


Better Than I Know Myself

by CrypticCravings (Sekaiinokoi)



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrinette, Angst, Arranged Marriage, Based on Persephone and Hades, Demon AU, Demon Adrien, Demons, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Markov - Freeform, Misunderstandings, Musical inspiration, Non-superhero AU, Rivals to Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Yin Yang - Freeform, adrienette - Freeform, demon king, minor character illness, minor season 2 spoilers, terminal illness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2017-12-29
Packaged: 2019-02-10 15:05:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 87,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12914430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sekaiinokoi/pseuds/CrypticCravings
Summary: Balance is sacred to the survival of the universe.The realm of demons is prone to darkness which threatens the destruction of all life. Without a beacon of light to balance the darkness, their realm will collapse and take the human realm with it.For generations, the King of the Demon Realm has been responsible for keeping balance with the light by bringing a symbol of hope to their realm: a human queen.Adrien Agreste is the next heir to the Demon King's throne. Since the death of his mother, a dark tension has been felt throughout both the demon and human realms. If Adrien does not marry his future queen soon, giving the demons their beacon of light, both of their world will collapse into chaos.His intended is chosen to be one Marinette Dupain-Cheng, a baker's daughter tired of her routine with dreams of becoming a fashion designer. Suddenly, this normal girl with big dreams is faced with a dilemma to decide her future, and possibly the fates of entire worlds.





	1. Kingdom

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, this has been a crazy few months, with so many ups and downs to finish this massive fic. I am so thankful to have been able to participate in this Big Bang. I never expected this piece to make it past 30,000 words, so seeing the final draft coming in at over 75,000 words feels incredible. 
> 
> I am so especially thankful to my amazing betas, who helped me fight through some ugly grammar and gaping plot holes: Night and InkJackets. Without y'all, this fic wouldn't have made it to the end.
> 
> Finally, thank you to the responders to this fic, nsart and toriistorii! I was honored to have two amazing responders on this fic, both of whom were so supportive and amazingly talented. Please go check out their blogs and their art on Tumblr, and be on the look out for their response pieces embedded in this fic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All of the chapters of this fic are named after songs, so if you're interested in listening to the music along with the chapter, I will be putting links in the notes.  
> The fic itself is named after Adam Lambert's Better Than I Know Myself.  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lg31XQR22zg
> 
> The first chapter is named after Kingdom by B.A.P.  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBS1stsxtzM
> 
> Art from this chapter by ToriiStorii and can be found here  
> http://toriistorii.tumblr.com/post/169084328581/an-experimental-watercolor-i-did-in-response-to

Adrien loved flowers, but they did not love him. Whenever he tried to plant any, they died without fail.

However, they loved his mother. The Queen of the Demon Realm could take a handful of seeds, put them in the ground, and an hour later there would be green sprouting up from the ground.

There was a special hill in the gardens behind the palace, about 100 meters out, where Adrien and his mother would go from time to time. Even though Adrien had a black thumb, for some reason whenever his mother was with him his flowers would grow nearly as well as hers did.

That must have been part of her powers.

Ever since he was a child, he’d been told that, even thought she was human, his mother carried the power of the light inside of her. He believed it, because he could see it with his own eyes. To Adrien, his mother was the brightest light in the universe.

One of the fondest memories of his childhood was sitting out on that hill with her, overlooking the town in the valley below, the distant mountains covered in brightly colored flower buds, and the petals from the cherry blossom tree over their head falling gently in the breeze. His mother would reach over and scratch his favorite spot on top of his head, right behind his ears, and tell him how much she loved him.

Adrien loved his mother.

He also loved flowers, but they did not love him.

And when his mother died, the flowers died with her.

* * *

_Good and evil. Hot and cold. Light and dark._

_The universe persists due to a fine balance that keeps the natural order in check. The same goes for its individual realms._

_The human realm is able to sustain its balance on its own; however, it is not free from the influence of other realms. One realm with an especially strong influence over the human realm is the demon realm, which exists only ten degrees removed from the humans. If one realm is unbalanced, the effects are felt throughout both._

_Unfortunately, the Demon Realm is far less stable than the Human Realm, and may fall into chaos and darkness quickly without a source of light._

_For generations, that light has come in the form of a_ Kore, _a human maiden who brings balance to their world by marrying the Demon King. Without a_ Kore _, the Demon Realm will succumb to the darkness, and drag the Human Realm down with it._

 _It has been four centuries since the Demon Realm has had its_ Kore _, and the effects of her absence are beginning to be felt._

* * *

* * *

 

Master Fu rubbed his palm across his chin as he contemplated the task set before him. "Are you sure the boy is ready for this?"

"I only know what the King has told me," Nooroo said, sipping his tea and making himself as small as possible. It left a pang in Fu's heart. The small, boyish demon was so used to the commanding presence of the king, he had forgotten the status the Kwami held in their world. His violet wings fluttered with a subtle nervousness as he took another sip of tea.

Fu sighed. "I suppose he's right. I have been feeling a tension on this side recently. If that's the case, it must be even worse in the other realm. Do we have a time frame?"

"As soon as possible. Preferably within the next month."

"One month, then?" Fu sighed, then called for his apprentice. "Wayzz!"

A small, green-haired, green eyed boy appeared not a second later, his matching lime colored jacket sleeves pushed up to the elbows, and arms filled with scrolls. "What is it, Master?"

"It's time to find the next _Kore_." Fu hoisted his old bones up and paced around the room to the record player. He punched in a code to reveal a carved wooden box inside. He carried it over to the low table and set it next to his tea. "If the King says that it is time, we have no choice. There must be someone out there with the light inside of them."

* * *

As usual, Marinette was late.

Fortunately, she wasn't late enough to bring her mother knocking on her door — just late enough that she'd have to skip her makeup and skin care routine. She threw on the first work-appropriate clothes she could find, brushed her teeth, and braided her hair before bounding downstairs and into the bakery.

Marinette was far from a morning person, but she was always up at sunrise to help her parents open the bakery. She would complain more, except that she knew they were both up two hours before her every day to do the opening shift baking. It wouldn't be fair of her.

She gave her parents a sleepy hug good morning before heading to the front of the bakery to dust off the display glass and check the change in the cash register. Once she'd done those tasks and opened the curtains, she helped her mother put the breads, cakes, and confections into the displays and unlocked the front door.

A routine start to another routine day.

Customers came in pretty steadily from opening, keeping her hands and mind occupied for the majority of the early hours. Her friends and former classmates stopped by on their way to jobs and classes, her regulars came in to pick up their usual breakfast, and everything carried on the same way it always had as long as she could remember.

After the morning rush, Marinette took her first break. With a sigh, she took the watering can from the back closet and filled it with water. There was still a steady stream of people coming in and out of the shop, but it was significantly lighter than the madhouse the bakery was in the early morning. Her mother assured her that she and her father had the front handled, so Marinette excused herself for a bit.

Outside, it was still warm from the summer sun, even though it was nearly September. It had been a particularly hot summer, but somehow she'd managed to keep her flowers alive in their little pots and boxes.

Watering the plants was a small moment of peace for her to just sit and think.

Here she was, nineteen years old, still working at her parents' bakery.

Sure, she loved her parents, and she loved the bakery, but she'd always known it wouldn’t be a permanent career for her. She figured her parents knew that, too. When she'd graduated _lycee_ the year prior, she'd wanted to take some time off from school to focus on her online shop and commissions. After all, if she was going to open a boutique one day, she needed to build a customer base and develop her style. But the time to apply to university came and passed again, and she was in exactly the same place she had been when she graduated. She had stagnated.

It was like she was waiting for something, but she had no clue what it was.

"Your flowers are very pretty," said a soft voice, startling Marinette out of her thoughts, and nearly causing her to drop the watering can when she jumped back.

A short boy with pale skin and peculiar pastel green hair was inspecting her flower boxes. He turned to her when he noticed her jump and stared at her with curiously yellow eyes that sent a chill up Marinette's spine. "Sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to startle you."

Marinette quietly reminded herself that he was probably just some teenager with too much access to colored contacts and hair dye. There was absolutely nothing weird about a kid experimenting with his appearance. She and her friends had done it plenty of times. Maybe not to this extent, but it certainly didn't make him abnormal.

She smiled at the kid and returned to tending to her boxes. "It's not your fault. I'm naturally jumpy."

"Well, the flowers look really nice. The marigolds especially. But shouldn't the periwinkle be out of season by now?"

"You would think, right?" Marinette sprinkled the plants with a bit more water, then lifted one of the delicate flowers with the tip of her finger. "For some reason, they've lived much longer this year. They might even make it to fall at this rate."

The boy smiled. "You have quite the green thumb."

Marinette shrugged. "I like plants. I guess they like me, too." She grinned at the small joke she made, but her mirth died as quickly as it had risen when she noticed the boy's calculating stare. Had she said something strange?

After a moment, the kid closed his eyes and nodded. He rose from his crouch and smiled. "It was good meeting you," he said, before turning to leave.

"Yeah, you too..." Marinette said with a half-hearted wave.

She watched him walk off, still wondering what the heck had just happened.

* * *

"So that's the one you think has the light?" Master Fu asked. He stared at the photograph Wayzz had brought him. The girl had a small frame, dark hair, and light eyes. The photo had been taken outside of a local fabric store. Her face was turned up towards the sky and there was a gentle smile on her face. Fu couldn't deny that there was something about her that drew him in.

He and Wayzz had been looking for two weeks with no luck finding someone who matched up with his extensive list. Wayzz had suggested many potentials, but Master Fu had turned all of them down so far.

"Yes, Master," Wayzz confirmed.

"What drew you to this one?"

"Her gardens."

Master Fu considered this. The last queen had had a knack for plants, so it made sense that Wayzz would be drawn to a green thumb, but that wasn't all it took to be a worthy _Kore_.

"She said something that sounded very familiar," Wayzz continued. "I can't place where I've heard it before, but it definitely caught my attention."

"Do you think she will pass?"

Wayzz nodded. "She feels different."

Fu placed the photograph on the table. He couldn't argue with Wayzz's instincts, but this match needed to be special. Not only would she have the world to carry on her shoulders, but she would carry a very fragile heart in her hands.

* * *

Adrien bounded over the streets of his city with wild abandon. He held his hat against his head to keep his ostentatious black ears from drawing unnecessary attention and leapt over the rooftops — as if that would keep him hidden, but what better way was there to get around when you were in a hurry?

The faster he could get away from Nathalie and Nooroo and his father and everyone else in that stupid castle the better.

His long tail counterbalanced him as he leapt over a particularly wide street, landed deftly on the rooftop on the opposite side, and startled a couple of ravens on his landing.

Adrien loved his realm, he really did, but his father was making being a prince very difficult. To be fair, he'd always known it was his duty to his realm to marry a human. It was just a shock for his father to spring it on him so suddenly. According to Nooroo, his father's retired right hand, Master Fu, would have his intended chosen within the month.

It was his duty to maintain the balance of his world. That had been ingrained in him since birth.

But how was he supposed to be ready within the month? His father was nowhere near ready to give up his throne, and Adrien desperately needed more than a couple of weeks to accept the fact that he was engaged.

He stopped atop a particularly tall building with a flat roof and collapsed onto his back. He was probably about ten kilometers from the castle by now. Hopefully it would take the guards some time to find him. Unless his father sent out the centaurs again, that is. They were obnoxiously fast.

A leaf blew in the wind and landed on the tip of Adrien's nose. He pinched it between two fingers and held it up to the sky.  Flexing his hand, he felt the dark energy flow through his fingers until the leaf disintegrated between them. He scowled and considered destroying something bigger, but decided it wasn't worth the effort, or the explanation to his father later.

"If you're going to break things, you could have at least invited me." A dark figure emerged from the alley beside the building, making Adrien grimace. He'd forgotten about the pesky Kwami.

Plagg stood tall over Adrien, black cat ears much like Adrien’s flicking and a devilish grin making him look twice as devious as he did on a typical afternoon.

"Did my father send you to bring me back?" Adrien asked without meeting his bright green eyes.

Plagg scoffed. "Yeah right. Like I take orders from that geezer."

"He's kind of your boss."

Plagg waved him off and slouched down next to Adrien. "Whatever. I was out patrolling the commoners' districts when I saw you flying about."

Adrien rolled his eyes. "Cats don't fly. We prowl. You know that."

Plagg mussed Adrien's hair and flopped back on the roof. "You know what I mean. So what has you all bent out of shape this time, kid?"

Adrien cursed at his cousin. Damn his ability to read him like a book. "Apparently I'm getting married in a month."

"Shiiiiiiit." Plagg gave a low, drawn out whistle. "They've already found your _Kore_?"

"Apparently there are contenders in the human realm. According to Nooroo, Master Fu and Wayzz have been looking."

"And they're already getting you ready for the ceremony when you don't have a bride?"

"Not quite that far yet. I don't think the wedding itself is happening in a month, but she--he---whoever they pick will be here by then."

Plagg would normally quip back with some sarcastic remark, but he was uncharacteristically quiet. Adrien turned his head and stared at the cat-Kwami, who was looking up at the turquoise sky.

"What kind of person do you think they'll pick?"

Adrien hadn't considered this until now. If he'd had his way he wouldn’t be marrying a stranger, that's for sure. "I imagine she'll have something in common with my mom. She was the last _Kore_ , so there was probably something about her that they need to see in whoever they pick next. Not that I know what that is going to be, of course." He turned on his side, facing his cousin again. "I want to trust Master Fu, at least. He was around a lot more when I was a kid, and he was good. If I can't pick who I'm marrying, I guess I'm glad he's picking for me."

“That’s stupid,” Plagg said.

Adrien scowled. “Says the person who's already found their other half.”

"Let me phrase that differently. What kind of person do you want them to pick?"

Adrien had been so caught up in his frustration that he hadn't even considered what he was hoping for. If his marriage was inevitable, he could at least have a bit of hope about his intended. "Someone warm."

"Humans are typically warm. It's in their blood. Which I hear is delicious, by the way."

Adrien ignored Plagg's smart mouth and continued. "Someone with eyes I never want to stop looking into."

"Gross."

"And even if this match isn’t for love, I want us to at least, I don't know, understand each other. Like each other. I want for us to be friends, I guess. It would be nice if we could have a mutual affection."

“Pathetic.” Plagg’s ears lay flat against his head, then twitched forward before flattening once again.

Adrien wondered what he could be thinking so intensely about, but decided against asking. He would tell him if he wanted to.

When Plagg finally spoke, his voice was soft. “As stupid and sickening as it is, I do hope that you get everything you want.”

Adrien grinned and nudged Plagg in the side. “Thanks.”

“Now we probably should get you back to the castle before your dad tries to have me murdered.”

Adrien laughed. “I thought you wanted to break stuff.”

Plagg hoisted himself onto his feet and stretched his long limbs. “We can break stuff in the castle. Take out your frustrations at the institution of marriage and your father’s oppressive nature and whatever. But first, take off that hat. You look like an idiot.”

As Adrien got to his feet, Plagg knocked the hat off of Adrien’s head, letting his black, fuzzy ears come free. They swiveled forward in response to the cool breeze.

Plagg challenged Adrien to a race back to the palace, and Adrien was all too eager for the distraction. Anything to take his mind off of the fact that in just a couple of weeks his fate would be decided for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Power_  
>  Wisdom  
> Patience  
> And Innovation  
> Do you possess all these?  
> Thou who wishes to wear the crown shall bear its burden.
> 
>  
> 
> _This is our kingdom._


	2. She Is

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is named after She Is by Jonghyun.  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmNhfjzmMrU

Marinette glared out the window of the cafe for the third time that hour. She could have sworn she had just seen another flash of green, but it was just some tourist’s backpack.

“You’re being totally paranoid, M.” Alya laughed, tossing her braid back over her shoulder.

“I’m telling you, this kid is creepy. He just pops up out of nowhere and like watches me. I don’t know what to do!” Marinette slumped back in her chair and pouted.

“So, do you think this weird green guy is stalking you? Maybe you should report it to the police?” Nathaniel suggested.

Marinette groaned. “I don’t know. Maybe I should, but he seems pretty harmless every time I actually talk to him.”

Alya picked up her cappuccino and took a sip. “They always seem harmless at first. Nathe is right, maybe you should report it.”

“I guess. If I see him again I’ll go to the station.”

Nathaniel nodded. “Good. The last thing we need is you disappearing on us or getting into trouble.”

“Or at least more trouble than you usually get into,” Alya corrected.

“Ha ha,” Marinette said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. “Thanks so much for your confidence.”

Nathaniel and Alya made a couple more jokes at her expense, but Marinette tuned them out, staring out the window and hoping that the situation wouldn’t escalate to the point of needing to involve the police. She had been serious when she said that the green-haired boy didn’t seem dangerous, but he had been popping up out of nowhere around her at the weirdest times. His behaviour never ceased to confuse her, either.

There was that first time he’d spoken to her about the flowers, which had been unusual enough. But then he’d shown up again while she was in the park, and again when she’d been babysitting Manon. Each time she ran into him, he asked another series of weird questions, ranging from “how are your plants doing” to “when you were a child, did any strange or unnatural things happen to you”. She was starting to get really creeped out.

She shook those thoughts away and tried to keep them pushed to the back of her mind. She and her friends enjoyed the rest of their drinks before leaving the cafe, and of course, Marinette checked over her shoulder every few moments. Fortunately, the green-haired kid didn’t show his face that day.

Nathaniel and Alya noticed her paranoia, and teased her a bit more, but Marinette knew there was no malice in their words.

“Ugh” Marinette groaned, pushing away from the table with both hands, “I’ve had enough, you jerks.”

“Aww, don’t leave,” Nathaniel said through his laughter, wiping a stray tear from his eyes.

“Yeah, you know we don’t mean it,” Alya added.

Marinette slung the strap of her purse over her shoulder anyway. “I’d love to stay and get made fun of for my legitimate concerns some more, but I actually do have to go. I have to help _Maman_ at the bakery.”

Her friends groaned, not wanting her to leave, but she left them with a promise to meet up later. Despite all of the fun they poked at her, she truly loved being around them.

* * *

As soon as she was dressed and in the bakery, her father began sending her out on delivery orders. Luckily for Marinette, they only delivered within a three kilometer radius to regular customers, so she was able to walk and enjoy the remaining summer warmth.

Unfortunately for her, it meant carrying around parcels and boxes all over town, and it took hours. What normally would be a five-minute visit often turned into fifteen or twenty when she saw the regulars she’d known for most of her life. They wanted to know how she was doing, if she was going back to school, how her commissions were going, and if she could repair the stitching on their vintage dress.

It was well past the bakery’s closing time by the time she began her final delivery of the night. Fortunately, her last customer tended to be her most understanding.

The box in her arms held one hundred fifty assorted macarons for a party that would be happening the next day, and she needed to ensure that they reached their destination safely.

She was waiting for the light to turn at the Champs-Elysees when she noticed something that stopped her heart in her chest.

There was an elderly man, probably in his eighties, trying to cross the road.

He labored into the street, relying heavily on his wooden cane. Marinette glanced around her, looking for anyone else who noticed this (probably senile) old man walking straight out into oncoming traffic, but everyone else was either deep in conversation or staring at their cell phones.

A passing moped nearly nailed him, swerving at the last second to avoid the old man, but he didn’t even flinch! Marinette’s heart jumped, and she knew she had to do something.

She glanced down the street and noticed a delivery truck heading straight for him, and she knew she couldn’t waste any more time. She ran out into the middle of the intersection and grabbed the elderly man by the arm. She pulled him back to the other side of the street, but just as she got him to safety her foot caught on a crack in the sidewalk, her momentum flinging her whole body forward.

As if in slow motion, she watched €240 worth of macarons fly out of her hands and to the ground in front of her. She watched the sidewalk come up at her so quickly that she couldn’t catch herself in time.

It was like a cartoon. Her limbs splayed out, face first onto the ground. She hadn’t fallen like that since _lycee_ , yet here she was, flat on the ground at the crosswalk.

And of course, no one around her seemed to bat an eye.

Marinette groaned and pushed herself up.

“Thank you very much, young lady,” the elderly man held a hand out to Marinette to help her to her feet.

Marinette bit the side of her nail as she looked at the macarons in front of her. She crouched down and picked up the box, which had dropped about twenty-five macarons to the ground. She reached for one of the lost cookies, but it was crushed not a second later under a business man’s shoe.

“Oh no, what a disaster,” the man said sympathetically.

Marinette sighed, shook her head, and rose to full height, picking up the box of macarons that were still in tact. She smiled and held out the box, offering a cookie to the man. “It’s no big deal. Disaster is my middle name. Besides, there are still some left.”

The man’s worried features seemed to ease at her reassurance. He thanked her and took a bite of a pistachio macaron. His eyes lit up. “It’s delicious!”

Marinette’s smile grew, and she realized that losing a few macarons was well worth it. “Thank you. I really should be going. Are you alright?”

“Just fine, thanks to you.”

“Great. Have a nice day, _Monsieur_.” She waved at him and took off back towards her parent’s bakery, already making plans to remake the damaged macarons before she went to bed that night.

* * *

Master Fu watched the girl retreat into the crowd, and felt a nudge in the breast pocket of his Hawaiian shirt. He placed his hand over the pocket with a smile. “You were right, Wayzz. She’ll do perfectly.”

He swung the walking stick in a wide circle and placed it on his shoulder before heading back to his apartment. He had an important correspondence to compose.

* * *

Nearby, another man pulled his hat down low over his eyes as he watched the old Master stroll away. He took out his cell phone and punched in a familiar number.

The other line only rang once before he was greeted with a gruff “Hello”.

“It’s happening. He’s found the next victim.”

A curse rang out over the speaker. _“Can you keep an eye on her?”_

“Absolutely, sir.”

_“Send me an address as soon as possible. Once I’ve sent a replacement to watch over her tonight, meet me back at headquarters for a status report. And don’t let her out of your sight. Do you understand?”_

“Yes, sir.”

_“Good. We can’t let this happen again.”_

The man hung up his phone and followed the tiny, black haired girl a few feet back. Just like the boss said, he wouldn’t let them hurt someone again.

* * *

Marinette put the finishing touches on the raspberry macarons that she had made to make up for those she had lost and wiped her brow. She was finally done. Fortunately, her father had deemed the remaining macarons to be in acceptable condition, so she’d only had to make one batch. Now she had to call up the customer and apologize, but she had a feeling that this phone call would be one of the easier ones.

“Hey Nathe,” she sighed. “I finally finished your mom’s order. Tell her I’m so sorry it wasn’t delivered tonight. There was a small mishap on the way over.”

As expected, before the words were even out, she could hear her friend stifling a laugh on the other line.

“Okay, yes, it’s so very funny that I had to spend an extra three hours remaking these very important cookies. Laugh it up,” she murmured, placing the last macaron in the box.

 _“What on Earth happened?”_ Nathaniel snickered on the other end.

“I tripped in the street.” Marinette grumbled.

Nathaniel roared with laughter and threatened to text the rest of their friends. _“You really haven’t changed much since we were kids, have you?”_

“Yeah, whatever. You’ve turned into a huge butt.”

_“Don’t worry about the late delivery. As long as they make it to the chateaux before the party, my mom doesn’t mind.”_

“Alright. I’ll bring them over first thing tomorrow morning.

_“Looking forward to it.”_

Marinette shook her head at the laughter in his voice even as she hung up the phone. She wouldn’t be hearing the end of that any time soon. He’d probably already texted Alya.

Marinette wiped down the counters and busied herself with doing the dishes. It was dark by the time she finished, with only a small lamp in the kitchen to light her work. She quietly wondered where the time had gone, and why her father hadn’t come to get her for dinner the way he usually did.

A small worry niggled at the back of her mind, but she dismissed the ridiculous notion. They had probably gotten sucked into one of her mother’s Chinese TV dramas again. Ever since Marinette had shown them how to hook their smart TV up to drama streaming websites, her mother had been absolutely obsessed, catching up on the most popular series since they’d last visited Tianjin.

Instead of entertaining unfounded worries, Marinette wiped her hands and tossed the towel into the laundry basket along with her parents’ aprons before climbing the stairs to the apartment above.

“ _Maman, Papa,_ do you need any help getting —” Marinette began, but as she turned toward the kitchen, she felt the air around her shift.

They weren’t alone in the house.

Sitting at the bar, with a cup of tea was the elderly man Marinette had helped across the street earlier, and next to him was her green haired stalker.

At the sight of him — of them — together at her table, drinking tea across from her parents as if it was the most casual, normal thing in the world, Marinette jumped probably five feet in the air and plastered her back against the wall with a high pitched screech.

Marinette wanted to shout, to ask him what he was doing in her house, but the words didn’t come.

“There’s no way we can allow this,” her father said, not even acknowledging her entrance. “That’s our daughter.”

“I understand your concern,” the elderly Asian man said calmly, as if Tom Dupain was somehow not frightening in his towering height, stacked muscular form, and clearly infuriated voice. “But you have to understand what this could mean, not only for my realm, but yours as well.”

“This is absolutely ridiculous,” Tom said, throwing his arms in the air.

As her father yelled at their house guests, Marinette’s mom came and wrapped a protective arm around her daughter, her eyes hard with suspicion as she glared at the men in their living room.

“Why should we even believe you? What you’re saying, it’s absolutely insane. Really I should just call the police!”

“Marinette, come and sit, please,” the mystery man implored, turning his seemingly kind eyes to her for the first time.

“Marinette, go up to your room,” her father said firmly.

She was about to do as her father said, feeling the unease of the situation in the pit of her stomach, but something about the man’s eyes was calling to her.

“Please,” he said again, his formerly calm voice sounding desperate.

Even the green haired teenager sitting next to him stared at her with frantic eyes. Seeing him look at her like that, rather than with the cold, calculating stare he typically regarded her with was enough to make her hesitate.

Marinette knew better, of course. There was a strange man and an even stranger boy sitting in her kitchen with her very angry father and clearly distressed mother. Rather than approaching any of them, she knew she should have run out the door and gotten the police. She should have pulled out her cellphone and called for help. She should have done anything, except what she did.

Instead of doing the smart thing, Marinette walked into the kitchen and pulled out the stool on the opposite side of the island from the house guests. Tom tried to grab ahold of her shoulder, but she was a little too quick. She could practically feel the tension pouring off of her mother as she sat down.

She schooled her face to disguise her unease, pulling on a mask of firm fearlessness and a steady demeanor. In as stern and even a voice as she could muster, she asked, “Would someone like to tell me exactly what is going on, and what it has to do with me?”

“Very nice. Firm and diplomatic. You have a lot of potential.”

Marinette raised an eyebrow at them both, imploring them to answer her questions, ignoring the way her father stiffened and growled behind her.

Finally, the green haired boy spoke up, “Marinette, I know this has been a confusing couple of weeks. You’ve been suspicious, and not without good reason. I promise you, though, it is all for good.” He rose from his seat and came to stand before her, offering his hand. “My name is Wayzz. I am a breed of demon called a Kwami, knight of the other realm. This is Master Fu, one of our Guardians. We have an offer to make you.”

At this point, Marinette was fully convinced that this was all an elaborate prank. She didn’t have time to call them out on it, though, before Master Fu spoke up.

“We are diplomats from the Demon Realm, the plane that neighbors yours. We have been sent to find the next queen of our realm to marry our prince. You’ve probably noticed Wayzz hanging around you the past few weeks.” Marinette glanced at the kid with trepidation. “He was tasked with finding the next _Kore_. Over the past month, we have tested many, but only you have passed.”

The small corner of Marinette’s brain that was still functioning figured she probably looked like a gasping fish out of water with the way her mouth popped soundlessly open and closed. She kept trying to form words, with no success.

Fortunately, her mother had always been better at finding her words than she had. Sabine placed a comforting hand on her daughter's shoulder. “I think it’s time for you to leave. I don’t know who you really are, but if you continue to follow and harass my daughter, we will call the police.”

Tom came around to his wife’s side, landline already in his hand.

Master Fu sighed and stood from the stool. “I suppose we have no other choice.”

Marinette almost relaxed, thinking that these strange people would finally be leaving her alone. Unfortunately, things could never be so easy.

The air in the room suddenly dropped several degrees and began to shift, almost like a wind circling through. Even the leaves on Sabine’s plants waved with the movement. Before Marinette could even question what was happening, there was a flash of green light.

Marinette felt her blood run cold.

By the time the light cleared, their two intruders seemed to have disappeared. In their place stood a six foot tall Chinese man, probably in his mid-thirties. He was Master Fu’s opposite through and through. While the elderly man seemed frail and slow, this man was stacked, and seemed as though he could break a brick wall with one swift punch. A pair of black horns curled from his temples into the air and came to sharp points, and a pair of deep red wings, like a bat’s, rose even higher than his head, making him look more like a dragon than a man.

Meanwhile, Wayzz seemed to have disappeared entirely.

Marinette shot up, the stool she had been sitting on clattering to the ground behind her. Her father pushed both Sabine and Marinette behind him with one arm and stepped forward in a defensive position. Marinette clutched a hand to her chest to keep her heart from beating right out of her ribcage.

“Please, don’t be afraid,” Wayzz’s voice said, “it is still us, and we truly mean no harm.”

Marinette squinted through the low light of the living room, looking for the source of the voice.

A small green blur flitted over to Marinette from the shoulder of the dragon-man, and Sabine’s grip tightened on her daughter’s arm. A tiny, green, turtle looking thing stared at her with huge yellow eyes, hovering right in front of her nose. Marinette may have been nineteen years old, but she still clung to her father for protection.

“These are our true forms, Marinette,” the green thing said, “Please look at us, and know that we speak the truth.”

Marinette felt the world shifting around her and little black spots danced in her eyes. She had to steady herself against her parents.

There was a turtle, flying around like a bug, which was apparently also that weird green kid who had been following her for weeks, right in front of her face. And two seconds ago, he had been a person.

“Please do not be afraid,” the weird turtle-bug-Wayzz thing implored with pleading eyes.

“I’ve got to be dreaming,” Tom murmured, not lowering his protective arm even a millimeter.

“I promise, all of you are very much awake,” the dragon-man said. “It is like Wayzz said. He is still the same, and I am still Fu. Since you wouldn’t believe our words, we had to prove to you the truth.”

“Please give us another chance to explain.” Wayzz added, floating down to sit on the island counter, giving Tom marginal space to relax.

Fu still seemed to understand that moving towards the Dupain-Chengs would not have been in his best interest, despite his size and apparent power, so he remained standing where he was. “As I said before, we are diplomats from the Second Realm, a world for demons. But we are not like your human stories have portrayed us. Our appearances and abilities may differ from yours, but we are more alike than you realize. Our worlds are closely linked.”

“But the Second Realm has come into grave danger,” Wayzz continued, his head falling a bit, and the weird antenna on top of his head drooping. “Our realm is...unbalanced. We have an excess of dark energy that tips the scales into chaos if it is left uncontrolled. Your world holds the light which balances out our chaos. We need a human with a special connection to that light in order to maintain order in the Second Realm.”

“That is where you come in.” As Wayzz was speaking, Tom had lowered his arm, allowing Marinette to step a bit closer, and giving Fu the ability to approach the family. “That human is what we call the _Kore._ She is the betrothed to our future king, and she links our two worlds. Wayzz and I believe that you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng have the qualities of a very powerful _Kore_ , and could save not only the Second Realm, but your own world as well. But in order to do so, you must come with us.”

“What do you mean ‘our world’?” Marinette asked, daring to take another step closer.

Wayzz seemed to sense her discomfort and spoke softly, “Because of the proximity of our realm and yours, if chaos should take hold of the Second Realm, it will certainly consume the human realm as well, which would mean the downfall of all society as we know it.”

“We do not expect an answer tonight.”

Marinette lifted her head to find that Fu had reverted from the strange half-dragon back to the harmless, elderly man she had met in the street.

“I will leave these here for you,” Fu said, producing a document and a very old book out of thin air. He placed it on the counter behind Wayzz. “This will have the answers to your questions, as well as the details of the betrothal. If you agree to the marriage, we will have a probationary period to see if this is a good match. I will return at the end of the week for your answer. Until then, please consider what we have said.”

“Now hold on,” Tom spoke up, “there is absolutely no way that we can--”

“I will look over this.” Marinette interrupted.

Her parents gasped behind her, but she ignored them. She took the book into her trembling hands, feeling the weight of it.

“Thank you.” Master Fu’s voice gentle, reverent almost, as he seemed to sigh in relief. “We will return in seven days to hear your answer.”

Marinette nodded.

“Oh, and I have one last thing to leave with you,” Fu said. He placed a small, black box on top of the book in her arms. “Use it wisely.”

“Of course,” she said, wondering what was inside.

She and her parents watched as Master Fu and Wayzz walked out of their kitchen. Her mother followed them down the stairs to make sure they made it all the way out before locking the doors behind them.

When Marinette met her father’s eyes, she saw two emotions he so rarely showed her: anger and fear.

“What are you thinking, Marinette?” Tom asked, working hard to control the volume of his voice. He placed a hand on his daughter’s shoulder. “You can’t actually be considering this, can you? You can’t tell if those people--demon--things are lying. They could be making all of this up.”

Marinette clutched the book and documents to her chest. “I know you’re right, but I don’t think they’re lying. Call it a gut instinct, but I have a feeling this is very real.” She looked down at her feet. “And I know it’s crazy, but what if he’s right? If he’s telling the truth, then I have to do something, right?”

Tom pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers. “ _You_ don’t have to do anything. The fate of the world isn’t your responsibility, Marinette. You’re only nineteen! What about your life?”

“I only said I’d think about it.” Marinette said. “And right now, that’s all I’m going to do.”

Sabine, ever the peacemaker even in the most stressful times, returned upstairs with her cellphone in hand. “I’ve ordered delivery for dinner tonight. It’s a bit late to cook, don’t you think?”

Marinette was thankful for her mother. Even though she could see the lines of stress around her eyes, and the tightness of her forced smile, she was trying to keep everything normal.

Marinette put the book back down on the island and embraced her mother. “Thank you, _Maman_.”

Sabine’s arms circled her daughter. Neither one of them bothered to mention the warm tears they spilled on each others’ shoulders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _I don’t care how we might seem to others  
>  Just looking at your eyes...  
> Oh she is _


	3. Be My Escape

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be My Escape by Relient K  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvz0J0WBZPE

“There’s a name?!” Adrien’s eyes were alight with excitement at the news Nooroo brought from Master Fu.

“Now, Your Highness, don’t forget, she still has to accept. Nothing is official quite yet,” Nooroo explained.

“Yeah, I know.” He waved his hand dismissively. He clutched the letter from Master Fu in his hands and ran a delicate finger over the name scribed in black ink. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng. That’s a wonderful name.”

Plagg snorted from the corner of the study. “Wasn’t it just a couple of weeks ago that you threw a huge tantrum over all of this?”

Adrien glared at him. Sure, he’d been pretty upset about it in the beginning, but then he remembered that his parents had married under similar circumstances. His father and mother had been very much in love in his childhood. His father had never been the same after losing his mother. If they could make it work, who was to say he couldn’t find his soulmate the same way?

Besides, he was sure his father was happy that he was taking his duty as heir so seriously, even if it was for personal reasons.

Adrien excused himself from the study and headed into the corridor, the letter still in his hands.

_Marinette Dupain-Cheng._

Her name was lovely. Adrien flipped to the next page of the letter and found a photo attached to the page.

 _She_ was lovely. Adrien was instantly stricken with how beautiful this young woman was. There was a smile lighting up her whole face as she soaked in the sun. There was something about her smile that tugged at his heart. It was nostalgic somehow, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.

He stroked the side of the picture with his nail. According to the correspondence, she would make a decision by the end of the week.

Adrien prayed that she said yes.

* * *

Marinette sat up late after her parents went to bed. She wasn’t even going to try to sleep, because with her frame of mind, she would just get more and more anxious. Instead, she sat at her desk with the giant leather book in front of her, reading.

She didn’t even feel like she was reading a textbook, though she assumed that was what it was meant to be. It seemed more like a book of stories. There were beautifully painted illustrations of past kings and queens, and pictures of what she assumed must have been Kwamis in their different forms.

Marinette closed the book and glanced at the pile on her desk. There were several documents from Master Fu off to the side, detailing the arrangement of the marriage, should she choose to accept. One of the benefits of accepting would be that her parents would always be taken care of. The contract stated that their home and business would always be protected and supported. There was also an envelope about her potential fiance, but she hadn’t touched that one yet. Her brain was too busy conjuring up images of what he could be like. She was afraid that opening the envelope and putting a face to the idea of him would make this whole situation more real than it already was.

For what was probably the hundredth time that hour, Marinette’s eyes were drawn to the black box Fu had given her before he left. What could possibly be in it? It was obviously important, and he’d told her to use it wisely. Marinette shrugged and decided it wouldn’t hurt to just open it.

She held the little box in the palm of her hand and plucked open the lid.

Immediately, a ball of pink light, similar to the green that had sparked in her kitchen earlier that night, hovered over the box. Once that light faded, Marinette came eye to eye with a tiny red and black demon. It looked almost like Wayzz’s turtle-bug form. If Marinette hadn’t already panicked over that transformation earlier, she might have screamed, or thrown something. But her day had been weird enough already, and the appearance of a tiny demon inside of a box another demon had given her just wasn’t as exciting or startling as it could have been.

“Hello,” she said, placing the box on her desk.

The tiny ladybug-looking demon smiled at her. Her enormous blue eyes actually looked warm and kind.

“Hello, Your Highness,” the tiny bug bowed her head to Marinette, “My name is Tikki. I am a Kwami Knight of the Second Realm, and I have been assigned to watch over you while you are in the Human Realm.”

“Did you just call me ‘Your Highness’?” Marinette asked, not fully processing everything else Tikki had said.

“But of course! You are the intended of our crown prince, so you should be regarded with that same respect.”

Marinette bit her lip. “Well, I haven’t exactly accepted the engagement yet. Honestly, I’m just trying to wrap my head around all of this.”

The Kwami smiled indulgently at her charge. “Don’t worry, Highness, I’m here to take care of you, and that includes answering any questions you may have.”

Marinette looked at Tikki’s huge blue eyes and figured it couldn’t do any real harm to have her around. “Alright, but can we make one deal?”

“Of course!”

“We can’t let my parents know you’re here. This whole,” she waved her hand in a vague circle, “thing has them really freaked out.”

Tikki regarded her carefully. “How do you feel about it?”

Marinette leaned back in her chair and stared out the window next to the computer. “I don’t know. I’m not even one hundred percent sure that any of this is even real. How do I know this isn’t a weird, prolonged dream?”

“I can think of one way,” Tikki giggled. She floated up to Marinette’s arm and pinched hard with her tiny hands.

Marinette yelped in pain and rubbed her throbbing deltoid. She glared at the tiny demon. “What was that for?”

“You said you wanted to know that this isn’t a dream, and now you have proof. And if you need more proof, you have these.” Tikki did a small twirl that eased Marinette’s scowl a little bit. She landed on top of the heavy book and indicated the stack of documents and the box that lay forgotten on Marinette’s desk.

Something red glittered inside of the box, catching Marinette’s eye.

“What’s in here?” She asked, mostly to herself, but of course, she wasn’t alone.

“Those are the _Kore’_ s earrings. When you are ready to accept the engagement, you put those on to signify your status.”

Marinette picked up the box to get a closer look. The earrings were large and round. There were probably twenty five gemstones embedded into each silvery circle. Several small, deep red gems, much more clear than rubies and far darker than garnet, surrounded five large black spinel in a polka dot pattern. The earrings were unusual, but very lovely. “So, they’re like an engagement ring?”

“Not quite. An engagement ring symbolizes your connection to another person. These earrings are about your own strength and power, unrelated to your fiance or husband. They have been worn by every _Kore_ in history to let other demons who come her way know that she is a force to be reckoned with.”

“You all keep saying this word, _cure-y_? _Cory_? _._ Master Fu and Wayzz said it, too. What the heck does that mean? Is it a demon word for queen or something? They said something about balance and light and that your world is in some kind of danger, but I still don’t know what is happening, or why I’m involved.”

“ _Kore_ comes from Greek, actually. It means ‘the maiden.’ Master Fu told you a little bit about maintaining the balance between worlds, right? Both humans and demons have light and dark energy inside of them, but our worlds draw in the energies at an imbalance. Energy of the light is the life giving force in our universe. It lives inside of all of us. But dark energy is what creates conflict in both of our worlds. It manifests itself in hatred, pain, sickness, and loss. The human realm disproportionately attracts light energy, while the demon realm disproportionately attracts dark energy. If the demon realm attracts too much dark energy, the entire universe becomes unbalanced. The realm will collapse in on itself like a black hole, sucking in every bit of light it can until every realm is consumed with darkness.” Tikki floated from her perch to above Marinette’s keyboard. She landed delicately on the space bar, activating the display and bringing up the homepage of an international news website. The screen scrolled slowly, revealing articles about a range of depressing topics, from riots to the incoming threat of international war. India, Kashmir, The United States, North Korea, there were headlines from around the world about various atrocities. “This is what the dark energy does. It infects humans and demons to create chaos and unrest. It’s like this in the Second Realm, too. Our people are afraid. Even in the capital city, which is normally so safe, people have been going missing and turning up dead for seemingly no reason. Our King is desperate, so he sent for you. Our realm is like a magnet for dark energy. We need someone who is in touch with the light to balance it out. That is who the _Kore_ is. Master Fu saw in you something that he doesn’t see in everyone, something greater than the light. You have the ability to harness that energy into something amazing to save both of our realms from coming unbalanced.”

“How?” Marinette rubbed her arm where Tikki had pinched it to remind herself that this was actually happening.

“Our royal family has the ability to harness the dark energy and manifest it into a physical form. You are one of the few humans who has the ability to do that with the light. You can learn how to harness that ability. If you marry our prince, light and dark energy come together in unity to create balance.”

Marinette’s head spun. Why had she been chosen for this? She was only nineteen. She was still trying to decide where to go to university. How could she even be thinking about marriage? Besides, she’d always thought that when she did get married, she would do it the way her parents had. She was so fortunate to have grown up with parents who were still so in love with each other. Marinette considered the earrings in her hand. “This is just all happening so fast, Tikki. I don’t know that I’ll be able to do it. Are you sure that I’m the right one for this?”

Marinette had always been a clumsy person, and though her confidence had grown significantly since she was a kid, this was a huge responsibility. Who was she to take on the fate of the entire universe?

“You are the chosen one, Marinette,” Tikki said, flying up to make eye contact. “Master Fu wouldn’t have left these earrings in your care if he didn’t believe you were the right one for the job.”

Marinette thought quietly about that for a moment. “This is all just so much.”

“Take some time to think about it. We don’t expect an answer right this moment. Just know that if you accept, you and your family will be taken care of.”

Marinette briefly considered spending a while going through the book in front of her, but the migraine that had been teasing at her for the past hour was coming into its prime. She would have to look at it in the morning instead.

* * *

Claude regarded the message on his phone with distaste.

Incompetent.

The demon scum had made direct contact with their target and her family, and his men had allowed him to come and go without consequence.

When Antoine had texted him the day before about The Dragon making meaningful contact with a human, Claude knew that things would be happening quickly from then on. They likely had only a few days to secure the girl before she was taken.

Claude sent off one more text, instructing his men to keep watch on the bakery and inform him of any major movement that takes place.

He wasn’t about to let this happen.

Not again.

* * *

When Marinette woke up, her morning went on as if nothing was unusual and there wasn’t a tiny demon in her purse. She got dressed, washed her face, pulled back her hair, and prepared the delivery for Nathaniel’s mom, throwing in a baguette and some croissants for the trouble she’d put them through. She was worried she wouldn’t make it in time, but was thankful that when she did arrive at the party’s venue they were still setting up.

Mrs. Kurtzberg was understanding about the accident and reassured Marinette that she shouldn’t worry about it. With all of the nonsense that had jumbled up her life the night before, Mrs. Kurtzberg’s calm demeanor and breezy personality was like a breath of fresh air. It returned a sense of normalcy to her life.

That comforting sense of what is regular was short lived, though.

When Marinette returned home, she was startled to find the bakery was closed. Tikki must have been able to feel her unease. She unclipped the purse at Marinette’s side and poked her little head up.

“I’m sure it’s nothing, Your Highness,” Tikki reassured her. “Yesterday probably took a toll on your parents, and they just need a bit of a break.”

“They never close the bakery,” Marinette murmured. She stared at the dark storefront from across the street, afraid to step any closer. “What if that darkness or whatever got to them?”

Tikki didn’t answer, which was all Marinette needed to understand that it was a very real possibility. She shot across the street, dodging oncoming traffic when she ignored the pedestrian signals. She unlocked the side entrance as quickly as she could and ran up the steps to her living room, where her mother was on the phone. Her father was on the couch, staring at the TV with a look of deep concentration on his face.

“Papa, what’s the matter?” Marinette asked, sitting down next to him.

Tom started at his daughter’s sudden appearance at his side. “Oh, Marinette. Did the Kurtzbergs like the macarons?”

She nodded. “They loved them, of course. Did you hear my question, though? Why is the bakery closed?”

“Oh, I...I need to take your mother to the hospital. This morning...in the bathroom, there was some blood. It could be nothing, but we just want to have some tests run to be sure.”

Marinette’s heart sank and she had to remind herself not to overthink anything. “What,” She croaked. She cleared her throat before continuing. “What do you think it is?”

“We looked up her symptoms. It could be nothing. Maybe just a small infection.”

“But?”

Her father’s eyes tightened and he looked back at the television. It was a report on another protest in the United States. Someone had died at this one, and there were nineteen more in the hospital. Marinette felt Tikki shift uneasily in her purse.

“But,” her father continued, his voice rough, “it could be something worse. Kidney failure. Or-or c--." His throat caught on the word, and he had to clear his throat to continue. "We aren’t sure. So we’re just going to get some tests done to be certain. It’s probably nothing.”

Marinette felt like the breath had been knocked out of her.

_Cancer? Had he been about to say cancer?_

No, there was no way. Her mother was the healthiest person she knew. She drank four cups of green tea each day, she’d never had a cavity in her life, and somehow, even if Marinette and Tom were both bent over a toilet with the Flu, she never even got a cough.

Yesterday had been stressful, just like Tikki said. Maybe that’s what it was. Blood didn’t have to mean cancer, right?

Sabine hung up the phone and grabbed her purse. She had managed to get a few appointments with specialists over the next couple of days, but needed to have a couple of samples taken first. She and Tom had to go to the hospital immediately.

Marinette asked if she could go with them, but Sabine acted like it was just a trip to the grocery store, telling Marinette it wouldn’t be worth the trouble, and that she’d be home in the afternoon.

So Marinette waved her parents off, and was left to her own devices, the internet, and a highly overactive imagination.

When she’d exhausted herself from searching medical diagnosis and information websites, and had herself worked up into a fit of anxiety, Tikki finally convinced her to get off the computer. Rather than being stuck in the house by herself, anxiously awaiting answers, Marinette knew she had to leave.

She grabbed her shoulder bag that she hadn’t used since lycee and threw in a few things. She needed to see Alya. Luckily, it was her day off.

Marinette stuck her sketchbook and some pencils in the bag, along with her tablet in case she wanted to obsess over this potential cancer any more, and some cookies for Tikki--the little demon had really taken a liking to them--as well as some snacks for Alya and her sisters. If the bakery was closed, someone needed to eat the leftovers. She was about to head out the door when the leather bound book on her desk caught her eye.

Of all times for everything in her life to go wrong at once…

Without another thought, Marinette shoved the book into her bag. Maybe Alya could offer some insight.

If she even believed what Marinette had to say.

* * *

As expected, when Marinette finished explaining her situation, Alya stared at her as if she had just grown another head.

When the moments ticked on without Alya even blinking, Marinette began to fidget in her seat.

Eventually she did speak, asking questions, checking on Marinette’s well being. Marinette had told Alya some crazy stories over the years, but this was the farthest out of this universe story she has ever told. If Alya was a sane person, she would have laughed, maybe dismissed the whole thing, but there was something about the seriousness in her best friend’s voice that told her this was no joke. This was really happening.

Alya was just coming around when Marinette opened her purse. Not only was there a huge leather book on the history of this other realm, but an actual demon came out with it!

“This is Tikki,” Marinette said, indicating the pinkish red creature floating in Alya’s living room.

Alya nearly passed out on the spot. It was one thing to choose to believe your friend when they tell you they’ve met demons. It’s another thing entirely to have a demon appear in front of your face in your living room.

“Nice to meet you,” the little red thing said, her voice high and sweet.

“Nice to meet you, too,” Alya said cautiously. “What kind of demon are you? You’re so little.”

The tiny demon giggled. “I’m a Kwami. We are demons with three forms. This form allows me to travel discreetly, without exerting too much energy. I am here to watch over our Lady until she makes a decision.”

“‘Our Lady’, huh?” Alya said. She considered everything Marinette said, then looked to her incredibly stressed out friend, who had a tendency to overthink every problem that came her way. “Do you know what you’re going to do?”

“Of course I don’t know,” Marinette sighed. She flopped back onto the arm of Alya’s mother’s sofa. “And on top of everything, my mother is now worried about kidney failure. She and my dad shut down the bakery and everything so that she could go get some tests done.”

“Oh, Marinette,” Alya pitched forward and wrapped her arms around Marinette’s waist, resting her head on her best friend’s chest, hoping that the closeness would provide at least a bit of comfort.

“What would you do, Alya?” Marinette’s hands came to the top of Alya’s head, fingers tangling in the thick, curly locks.

“Well,” Alya perched her chin on Marinette’s sternum to stare into her worried blue eyes. “If it were me and someone was offering the opportunity to save the world and all of humanity, I’d snatch it. I’d have the opportunity to be a real superhero, even if I didn’t get to punch baddies in the face. But this isn’t my decision. You have to think about what’s best for you. And if Mama Cheng is really sick, you need to figure out where your presence is going to be more important. From the sound of things, these demon people can find someone else if they really need to, but your mom only has one of you.”

Marinette stared at the ceiling above and mulled over Alya’s words. She was absolutely right. If anything happened to her _maman_ , there was absolutely no way she would ever consider leaving her side.

Alya seemed to understand the weight of Marinette’s thoughts, because rather than making any wisecracks to lighten the mood like she typically would she just lay there on the sofa offering comfort the only way she could think of. She only hoped that it could help lighten Marinette’s load.

* * *

The next few days went by in a blur. Marinette and her parents were on edge. The weight of her impending decision and Sabine’s test results weighed heavily on them all. Alya brought over food, courtesy of her mother’s restaurant, one night to check in and could tell how stressful things were for them. It made her wish she could do something more.

Tikki was proving to be an invaluable source of support for Marinette. She stayed away from Marinette’s parents as promised, and she was always there with a helpful word if Marinette was stressed out. At first, Marinette thought that it was just the Kwami doing her job, but she soon came to see that Tikki was just a very nurturing person. Creature? Demon? Whatever she was, she had taken caring for Marinette very seriously. She always made sure she had enough to eat, and went to bed on time. There had even been a couple of times that she’d been Marinette’s shoulder to cry on when it all became too much.

And soon, it did get to be too much.

Sabine got a call from the doctors more quickly than expected considering the sheer amount of tests she was subjected to. The doctor made the call personally, which told the entire family that things were not looking good.

Marinette texted Alya the entire way to the hospital. Tikki nudged her supportively from her hiding place inside of her purse. A feeling of dread weighed heavy in Marinette’s stomach, making everything around her pass by in a blur.

She barely noticed the commute or their time in the waiting room. If Marinette was this nervous, she could only imagine what her mom was feeling. While Marinette at least tried to project an image of a strong, responsible daughter, her father was having difficulty keeping himself together. Tom was vibrating out of his very skin with restlessness. There were deep, purple bags under his eyes, and his sallow complexion showed how little sleep he had actually gotten over the past few days.

As they sat together in the very small exam room, Marinette hoped against hope that it was nothing to worry about. Maybe it was just a bad infection, something easily fixed with antibiotics.

But as the doctor came into the room, his neutral expression said more than enough.

He showed them the images taken of Sabine’s urinary tract, and explained the blood work and sample results as tactfully as he could. It all came down to the heart wrenching diagnosis: bladder cancer, stage three at least. They would have to do some additional tests to see if the cancerous cells had spread to the rest of the body, indicating stage four. If those tests came up positive, the five year survival rate plummeted.

There were still treatment options, the doctor explained. There were experimental drugs, surgeries, and chemo. Bladder cancer wasn’t a death sentence.

To Marinette, it certainly felt like one.

She hung back while her parents scheduled more tests, her Strong Daughter facade slowly crumbling.

Tikki poked her head out of Marinette’s purse. “Are you going to be okay, Marinette?”

She blinked back a few tears. “I don’t know, Tikki. If _maman_ ends up having stage four, you heard the doctor, her chances of making it more than five years are below fifteen percent. I shouldn’t have to worry about losing my mom this early in my life.”

“I can understand how you must be feeling right now. I’ve seen how this kind of grief affects people. Remember that there are a lot of people here to support you, and your _maman_.”

Marinette smiled through the sadness at the Kwami’s support. “Thanks, Tikki.”

The tiny demon flew out of the purse to hug Marinette’s cheek before disappearing into the collar of her jacket. Her parents finished up checking out, and they needed to get back to the bakery to relieve their part time workers.

Marinette tried to convince them to take another day off, but they insisted that there would be plenty of those in the near future.

“I want to keep working,” Sabine said, the implied ‘ _while I still can’_ silently lingering in the air.

Marinette conceded, telling her parents that she would meet them back at home. She had an errand to run first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _I am a hostage to my own humanity_  
>  Self detained and forced to live in this mess I've made.  
> And all I’m asking is for you to do what you can with me  
> But I can’t ask you to give what you already gave...


	4. All In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All In by Lifehouse  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFhq22t5fdc

“This is the place, right?” Marinette said, pulling back her jacket to let Tikki look around.

The tiny bug nodded. “This is it.”

“Are you disappointed in me?” Marinette asked. She had really come to like Tikki over the past few days, and the thought of disappointing her made her stomach drop.

“Of course not.” Tikki snuggled against her neck. “It’s like Alya said, you have to make the right decision for yourself. We’re not going to force you, Marinette. None of us want to put you into a bad situation or back you into a corner.”

“Thanks, Tikki.”

Marinette took a deep breath and looked at the apartment ahead of her. It advertised healing services from the window. She had made her decision, now it was time to face the music.

The door opened before she even had a chance to knock. Wayzz stood before her, green eyes wide and curious. “Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng, we weren’t expecting to see you for a couple more days.”

“I...uhm,” she swallowed nervously. “I-I..May I speak with Master Fu?”

Wayzz nodded, his eyes softer than Marinette had ever seen them. “Of course.”

He stepped aside to allow Marinette to pass. As soon as she crossed the threshold, Tikki fluttered out of Marinette’s jacket and greeted her fellow Kwami. The two of them lead Marinette down the hallway into a living room full of East Asian-inspired decor.

“Have a seat, please.” Wayzz indicated a small table. “Master Fu will be here shortly. Would you like some tea?”

“No, thank you.” Marinette fiddled with the strap of her purse. This was not going to be a fun conversation, regardless of her answer.

“It would calm your nerves, Marinette. It might be good for you.” Tikki advised, coming to sit on the table before her.

Marinette smiled at her new friend, regretful that this may be their last day together. “Then I guess I should have a cup. Thank you.”

“It’s no trouble at all.” Wayzz bowed his head subtly before exiting the room.

Marinette sighed, but the release of air did little to relax her.

Tikki patted her hand with a tiny paw. “Everything will be alright.”

She hoped the demon was right about that.

It wasn’t long before Master Fu emerged from a side door, Wayzz on his heels with several cups of tea on a tray.

“Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng, it is good to see you,” Fu said, leaning on his walking stick, though Marinette knew it was all for show. “Though, I must say, it is a bit unexpected. Have you made a decision already?”

Marinette graciously accepted her tea from Wayzz, but didn’t meet Fu’s eyes. Instead she stared at the tea leaves floating in her cup. She nodded. “I have.”

Master Fu sat across from her, his own tea in his hands. Wayzz chose to stand off to the side. They waited patiently for her answer. Marinette took a deep breath and looked to Tikki for support. The little demon bug smiled warmly in return, ensuring that Marinette knew that they would not blame her for her decision.

Marinette lifted her eyes and met Master Fu’s. “I’m sorry, but I have to decline. My _maman_ was diagnosed with cancer this morning, and it doesn’t look good.” Marinette winced at her own words. She didn’t sound like herself, even to her own ears. It was like she wasn’t even connected to her body. The words came out stiffly, without any heat or emotion to back them up. “She might only have a few years left, maybe less, maybe a little more, but either way I just can’t leave her right now. For however long she has left, I need to be with her.” She averted her gaze again. “I’m sorry.”

“I see,” Master Fu said, his voice more thoughtful than it was disappointed. “Do you happen to have the contract with you?”

“Yes, I do.” She fished into her shoulder bag and pulled out the leather book, along with the contract for the engagement. She placed them on the table next to Tikki.

Fu rose to his feet and walked around the table to kneel next to her. He picked up the contract and studied it carefully. “Mademoiselle, did you read the contract in the time you have had it?”

“O-of course I have.”

“Did you see the clause about the family of the bride?” Fu placed the contract on the table before her and put his finger beside a section header.

“It says that my parents would be looked after….” Marinette hedged.

“Yes, it does, and we demons take our contracts very seriously. Once they are signed there is no getting out of one by either party. Of course, this contract is specifically for the period of probation from now until the possible wedding taking place on the Winter Solstice. If it is determined that you and the Prince are not a good match, you would be immediately released from the contract and permitted to return home.”

“Yes, I do understand that…”

“What I am trying to say, Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng, is that should you sign the contract and agree to the engagement on a probationary basis, I will personally ensure that your _maman_ is returned to good health. It would be my duty as the guardian in this realm to ensure the absolute safety and wellbeing of your parents. That includes preventing any untimely death.”

Marinette opened her mouth and tried to inhale. She tried to force air into her lungs, but it seemed that in her shock she couldn’t even do that.

It just wasn’t possible. No one had that kind of power. The doctors told her just that morning that her mom had maybe five more years left. There was just no way that this old man--demon--whoever he was could just waltz right into her life and hand her the answers.

“I--You--but,” she stammered, “Wha--what if--what if the prince and I are a terrible match, and I have to come home anyway?”

“Consider it a thank you for your efforts. Even if that happens, we will still take care of you and your _maman_.”

Marinette gripped the edge of the table, eyes wide. “You’re telling me that if I go with you to this Second Realm for just--just six months and _consider_ marrying your prince, you will heal my mom? No other strings attached?”

“Only what is outlined in the contract,” Fu said. “If you agree, we will always take care of you.”

Marinette stared at the leather book in front of her. On one hand, she could leave everything up to the science of medicine. After all, the doctors said it didn’t have to be a life sentence. Sabine Cheng still had a chance of making it.

 _“I won’t lie to you,”_ the doctor’s voice echoed in Marinette’s mind, _“the five year survival rate of people with stage four bladder cancer drops to about fifteen percent.”_

Her mom hadn’t even shown any signs of cancer. She had been perfectly healthy. She was strong as an ox, with so much energy…

_Fifteen percent._

Statistics had never been Marinette’s best subject, but she knew enough to know that fifteen percent was not a good outlook.

Marinette took the contract in trembling hands. The terms weren’t horrible. In fact, there was a lot in her favor if she chose to accept. It seemed that the protections on her family extended to their business as well. They would be financially stable, healthy, happy. Marinette would become a part of the royal family in the Second Realm. She would have to study and work, of course, but if it meant she could save her mom…

“If you need, please take a few more days to consider,” Master Fu urged.

Marinette closed her eyes and shook her head before turning to look at him once again. “You promise you can save her? This isn’t an ‘if’/’maybe’ situation, she absolutely will be saved?”

Fu placed a gentle hand over her’s where she gripped the contract. He guided her to put it down on the tale and took both of her hands in his own. “I promise you. I may need a bit of your help, but between the two of us, your _maman_ will be good as new.”

Marinette studied his hands, then his eyes. She knew she shouldn’t trust someone she just met, especially when that someone was a demon, but what other choice did she have? He was giving her and her family a way out of this mess. She would be crazy not to take it, right? She glanced one last time at Tikki, who had moved to sit on top of the book. Marinette did trust her. The little Kwami nodded.

She took a deep, shuddering breath and closed her hands around Master Fu’s. “Alright. I’ll do it.”

As soon as the words left her mouth,every demon around her seemed to sigh in relief. Master Fu’s hands tightened around her’s, and Tikki let out a relieved giggle.

“Thank you, Marinette,” Tikki said, flying up to hug Marinette’s face.

Their relief was infectious. Even Marinette started to relax, thinking that everything might be alright after all.

* * *

Claude stared at his computer, a hot rage rising in his stomach at what he was seeing.

They’d gotten her.

The video, although it was taken on a covert cell phone from down the street, showed it as clear as day. He watched the young Dupain-Cheng girl, eyes still bright and innocent, walk directly into the lion’s den.

“Shit,” he bit out, slamming the lid of the laptop closed.

He considered ripping his men a new one for not following his instructions to keep her far away from that place, but decided against it. Maybe this could work in his favor.

It might mean sacrificing one innocent soul, but for the sake of all of humanity, maybe it would be worth it. Besides, he could easily cleanse her and deliver her to heaven, just as he had with the demon’s last victim.

It looked like it was time to get started. Afterall, they’d been waiting for three hundred years for this moment, stalking, planning. And it was finally happening.

* * *

After going over the details of their arrangement with Marinette, Master Fu gave her a few days to get her affairs in order. He warned her that it could be a very long time before she could return, so saying her goodbyes would give some closure.

Her list of people to say goodbye to had grown short recently, not for lack of friends, just because most of her friends were out living their lives. She was more worried about her parents. They would not be taking this well.

“Are you going to be okay, Marinette?” Tikki asked. She was snuggled into the breast pocket of Marinette’s jacket.

Marinette was thankful that the Kwami had dropped the whole “your highness” bit. Tikki really had become more of a friend to her than a guard, and for that Marinette was thankful. She was going to need a friend where she was going.

“I’ll be alright,” Marinette responded, painting a smile on her face. “This is just going to be a little difficult.”

Marinette forced on a brave face, and Tikki hid once again in her pocket. She could feel the Kwami nudge her forward supportively.

Upstairs, Sabine was looking over the results of her MRI. Tom had a stack of applications in front of him for part time workers at the bakery.

“Maman, Papa, can I talk to you for a moment?” Marinette asked, fidgeting with the hem of her jacket.

“Of course,” Sabine said, keeping her voice as even and cheerful as possible. “Do you want to talk about today?”

“I know things look scary, Marinette,” Tom said, putting an arm around his daughter and guiding her over to the sofa, “but we can get through this together, Dupain-Cheng-Style.”

Her father’s optimism and her mother’s comforting hand on her’s nearly brought Marinette to tears right then and there, but she knew she had to be strong. There would be time for tears later.

Marinette took one of her parent’s hands in each of her own and took a deep breath. It was now or never. “We need to talk about the offer from Master Fu. I’ve….decided to take it.”

* * *

Adrien hadn’t run around the palace like this since he was a carefree child.

But today, they received word from Master Fu on the other side. His future was full of opportunity. Opportunities to do things right for his people, opportunities to connect with another person, a future full of possibilities that gave him hope for a break in his oppressive routine life.

So, he ran. He bounded through the halls at the same speed he had a month prior when his father called him into his office to inform him of the engagement in the first place. But while a month ago he was quite literally running away from his problems, he was now running towards his future.

Or at least his future’s future chambers.

He burst through the door to find his cousin and court duchess, Chloe, bossing around the decorators for the temporary _Kore_ chambers.

“Are you completely blind?!” She shrieked, holding a paisley pillow up to the heavy curtains. “These prints totally clash! Are you a royal decorator or a fool?”

The poor decorator stammered out an apology and promised to replace the pillows with a more complementary pattern before scurrying out of the room.

“Couldn’t you go a bit easier on the decorators, Chlo?” Adrien asked with a chuckle.

“Who even raised you?” She scoffed. “This kind of outrage is completely normal in the face of incompetence like that. You actually think your father would have approved of that? With his pickiness? I did everyone a favor by nipping it in the bud before it got out of hand. You’re lucky to have a trusted feminine touch in this palace at all.”

“Still, don’t make them fear for their lives.”

Chloe pouted and adjusted some of the furniture in the sitting area of the lounge. “So is she actually coming?”

Adrien grinned. “Yes. She’ll be here in two days. Master Fu didn’t give me much information, but Tikki is with her until they come over.”

“Good,” Chloe said, a surprising touch of tenderness in her normally steely eyes. “You could use some company aside from these Kwami who are always buzzing about.”

“I have you and Nino,” Adrien pointed out.

“And I have a life of my own, _Adrichou_.” She patted his cheek with an open palm as she walked by. “I can’t babysit you forever.”

Chloe breezed past the wet paint signs and open containers scattered around the lounge to the doorway leading to the bedroom. Adrien followed a few steps behind

“Your father made a good choice asking me to oversee this. Only two days to finish renovating this entire suite! These idiots would have used _wool_ tapestries if I hadn’t interfered.”

Adrien watched and listened to Chloe’s complaints as he observed the progress in the room. The suite was only temporary, of course. The assumption was that once they were married, the _Kore_ would share Adrien’s chambers. Eventually his father would retire, and the two of them would move into the King and Queen’s chambers, but for a few months, at least, Miss Marinette Dupain-Cheng would call this suite her home.

Adrien admired the lengths his father was willing to go to in order to make her feel at home. He wasn’t a particularly sentimental man, King Gabriel, but Adrien was willing to bet he was feeling a bit nostalgic. Settling the new _Kore_ in to palace life would have been the Queen’s job, were she still around.

The washroom was finished, the lounge was just waiting on a final coat of paint--and new pillows, of course--but the bedroom seemed a bit empty.

“A girl’s room is very personal,” Chloe explained, sitting at the edge of the canopy bed. “I’ve requested only the basics for now. She can pick out the rest when she gets here.”

“You know, sometimes I forget you’re actually a nice person.”

Chloe scowled. “Filthy slander. Don’t let me catch you saying that to other people.”

Adrien chose not to mention the budding flush on the duchess’s cheeks. He stifled his laugh at her expense and stepped to the side so that she could pass when the team of painters returned from their lunch break.

He glanced out the large floor to ceiling windows that opened onto a balcony over the garden that hadn’t been in bloom in nearly three hundred years.

The bushes were green--they had always been green at least--but they seemed brighter than usual. Fuller. Maybe it was just his imagination, but the air even seemed lighter. The hope for a better future not just for himself, but his entire realm, seemed to be a tangible thing. Adrien could almost reach out and touch it. He couldn’t wait.

* * *

Marinette stared into the mirror, her long hair pulled back behind her ears. The heavy red and black earrings were an unfamiliar weight in her earlobes.

“What kind of stones are these?” She asked Tikki, who was snapping the final clasp on the suitcase that held nearly her entire life in one small bag.

Well, not her entire life. There was a lot she had to leave behind. Her sewing machine, her computer, her stuffed animal collection. But she had the important things. She had her diary, her phone--whether or not it would work on the other side was another story-- and her favorite clothes. She’d even managed to get her favorite blanket in there.

“They’re called Taffeite,” Tikki said.

“I’ve never heard of that before.”

“It’s rare in your realm, and even rarer in those colors. They’re one of the symbols of the royal family, and very precious. Those earrings have been passed down to every Kore since the very begining, when the King crafted them for the first Kore with his own hands.”

Suddenly, Marinette felt like she should take the earrings out. She rarely wore such precious jewelery, even reserving the pearls her grandmother gave her for special occasions. She couldn’t even begin to think about how much earrings like these must be worth.

Marinette shook her head. She needed to focus on more pressing matters, like the fact that this would be the last time for quite a while that she would be in her bedroom.

She told herself that it was going to be like studying abroad. She would go for a few months, learn some new things, and then, once she told her “fiance” that things weren’t working out between them, she would come home and her mother wouldn’t be sick anymore and everything could go back to normal.

“Are you ready, Marinette?” Tikki asked.

No. Not really, but she didn’t exactly have a choice. Master Fu told her that they only had a small window of time to open the door into the next realm. If they missed their window of opportunity, they would have to wait even longer. Not that Marinette would mind waiting longer, but she had signed a contract. They had an agreement.

She nodded, despite the lead in her stomach. She had to go downstairs and say goodbye to her parents still.

When she told them a few days prior about her decision, they were absolutely livid with her. Her father, normally such an easy going guy, had yelled and cursed up a storm. They’d tried to forbid her from going. Didn’t she know how dangerous this was? How could she trust some demon she knew nothing about? What if it was all a lie?

But then, Marinette explained what she was exchanging for her six months on the other side. It had taken some time, but eventually Tom and Sabine calmed down enough to hear her out. To this day, she knew they were mad at her. Fortunately, they weren’t the type of parents to shut her out over a grudge. They’d spent their time together as a family wisely, savoring every moment.

Before they could blink, it was time for Marinette to go.

“I promise, it’s going to be alright,” the tiny Kwami assured her. “Do you have the package for Master Fu? The one Wayzz asked for?”

Marinette nodded again, not trusting herself to speak. Keeping up his end of the deal, Master Fu had developed a potion that would hold off the progression of Sabine’s cancer, and help it to pull back some.

 _“It is not a cure all,_ ” he told her, _“but it can keep her safe for quite some time. But you are predisposed to some incredible abilities yourself. The_ Kore _holds great power. With some training, you will be able to cure your mother yourself.”_

Marinette wasn’t sure if she could believe him, but she’d decided to trust him. The other day, Wayzz brought over a list of things Master Fu would need in order to craft the potion for Marinette’s mother: a vial of Marinette’s tears, and some of her mother’s hair, preferably with a follicle still attached. Feeling like she’d suddenly stepped into a Halloween movie full of witches and monsters, Marinette gathered what Master Fu asked for and prepared the package to hand over that night.

Looking at the vial, it seemed unreal how easy it had been to fill. She hadn’t realized how much she had been holding herself back until she allowed herself to cry. Everything she was feeling about her mother’s diagnosis, leaving her friends and family, and being trapped in an engagement to some demon she’d never met came pouring out of her at once.

There was a soft knock on Marinette’s trap door, jarring her out of her thoughts. Tikki flew into Marinette’s purse.

The door opened and Sabine came up through the floor. Marinette pretended not to see the red rimming her mother’s eyes. “Are you ready sweetheart?”

Marinette glanced around her childhood bedroom one more time, knowing it would be quite a while before she would be able to return. “Yeah. I’m ready.”

She grabbed her suitcase, as well as the grinning cat plush from on top of her desk. It was time to go.

Her family met in the darkened bakery. They needed to meet Fu and Wayzz in the nearby park at exactly 3:00 AM. Alya was meeting them there as well, swearing that her best friend was not going to another realm without saying goodbye first.

With her father’s hand on her shoulder and her mother at her side, Marinette stepped out of the bakery she had grown up in and towards her new, slightly terrifying, life.

* * *

Claude stayed hidden in the trees. He could see more of his men in the shadows across the clearing, clearly there but not obvious enough to draw any attention to themselves by their….supernatural targets.

He saw the young woman approach the clearing and spat out a bitter curse at the sight of her _family_ with her.

“How could they condone these atrocities?” Antoine asked with a scowl.

Claude shushed the young man. He was still new to their cause, but his passion was impressive. “They’ve all been lead astray. The influence of those dark ones is powerful.”

“Should we stop them? Maybe if we can keep that girl from crossing over, we can stop all of this--”

“No. She has to go.”

“But her soul will be tainted--”

“Not until the winter solstice. That is when the ceremony will be held. Until then, she can still be saved. It is better for us to watch for now. If we can find a weak point, we can prepare an offensive.”

Antoine considered this thoughtfully.

Claude returned his attention to the exchange in the clearing. The Dragon had arrived with his disciple. The _Kore_ handed him a box with a bow of her head and the disciple took her bags. To Claude’s disgust, another young girl came running up to the rest of the group.

How many innocent people had the demon scum involved?

The portal would be opening soon, and Claude needed to keep sharp focus if he had any hope of discovering how to break through that barrier.

All of his research, all of the time he had invested in this cause, that was the one thing that continued to elude him. Sure, he had pinpointed the exact time and location that the main portal opened, but for the life of him he could not crack exactly how it opened. If he could just figure that out, the rest would be simple.

* * *

“It’s going to be okay, girl,” Alya said, her voice lacking its usual pep. “It’s like good old Master Fu said, we can write letters, and whatever. It’ll be just like before they had emails and text messaging.”

Marinette laughed, the chuckle sounding forced even to her own ears, “I don’t think you could survive without your cell phone. Are you sure you even know how to write a letter?”

Her snide comment was met with a playful smack on the back of the head. “I’m not completely inept, you know.”

“I know. Tell Nath I said bye for me? I didn’t get a chance to talk to him.”

“You got it, M.”

Alya pulled Marinette in for one final hug before stepping aside for her to say goodbye to Tom and Sabine.

Marinette’s mother’s hugs were just as warm and comforting as they had been when she was a little girl. Part of her still wished that this was all just a dream, and that she would wake up any second in her _maman’s_ loving arms. Unfortunately, that just wasn’t going to happen. Marinette forced herself not to cry.

“Come back to us safe,” Sabine commanded, her grip on her daughter tightening.

“Here.” Tom handed his daughter a large paper bag with the bakery’s logo on it. The tears in his eyes were heavy, but they did not fall. “A little taste of home for the road.”

Marinette looked inside the bag and felt her resolve not to cry weaken just a bit. All of her favorites from the bakery were in there, as well as some of her mother’s home cooking all wrapped up into portions for her.

“This will serve her very well on the other side,” Master Fu mused, peering into the bag as well.

“Thank you, Papa.” Marinette said, her voice cracking.

As Marinette said her goodbyes, Master Fu, Wayzz, and Tikki, who had snuck out from Marinette’s purse, began setting up the portal. It had to be activated at exactly 3:00AM, the time the humans called “the witching hour”, or they would have to wait. Fortunately for them all, Fu always came prepared. He left Marinette to say goodbye to her family while he set up the portal.

“Master, we should work quickly,” Tikki said, fluttering up to hover next to Fu’s ear. “We have an audience.”

Fu simply smiled, glad that the Kwami had sensed them as well. “They won’t make a move, but be sure to report this directly to the captain of the guard and the intellegance officer once you are on the other side.”

Tikki nodded. “Yes, Master.”

Marinette hugged both of her parents tighter in her arms, saying everything she wanted to say without words.

“We love you, too.” Her father said, one large arm around each of his girls.

Her mother kissed her on the cheek, and her father kissed her forehead. It was time to say goodbye.

Wayzz held Marinette’s suitcase, as well as the bag of pastries.

Suddenly, a flash of violet light filled the clearing. There was a large glowing hole that appeared seemingly out of nowhere--the portal.

“It is time to go, Marinette.” Master Fu said, laying a hand on her arm.

She nodded. She took in the sight of her parents and her best friend in the glowing purple light--the last time she would be seeing any of them for a very long time. She opened her mouth to say goodbye, but the words didn’t seem right. They seemed too final. So instead, she told them all one last time, “I love you.”

“Goodbye, Marinette,” Alya said, waving her off.

“Be safe, sweetheart,” Sabine called, dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief.

“Take care of yourself.” Tom waved.

Marinette backed away from her family, tears in her eyes, and waved goodbye. Tikki came and gave her a comforting pat on the cheek. At the very last second, Marinette turned her back and looked into the violet doorway before her. She took one final breath before stepping through the portal into the unknown.

* * *

Nathaniel blinked.

He blinked again.

He rubbed his eyes, shook his head, and did a double take because there was no way he was seeing what he thought he was seeing.

He’d just come out here to sketch the full moon and the way the light played over the trees for a project at school. He never could have imagined that he would witness something so completely unbelievable.

No, he had to be sleeping. There was no way he’d actually just seen Marinette walk through a portal in the middle of a park. This was definitely a hallucination of some kind. He had to be dreaming.

A sharp sting on his neck caused Nathaniel to wince and smack himself in the skin.

 _Damn mosquitos_. That hurt.

Shit. If it hurt, that meant it wasn’t a dream.

The charcoal pencil in his hand clattered to the sidewalk below. “Holy fuck.”

* * *

A sharp expletive drew Claude’s attention. Behind him stood a boy, probably in his early twenties, with teal eyes, red hair, and an expression on his face that said he’d just seen everything that had gone  down.

Claude bit his tongue on a curse of his own.

“Marinette,” the kid choked out. He stumbled forward a few steps, not even noticing Claude and his follower in the trees next to him. “Marinette, come back!”

The Dragon and his disciple had vanished through the portal after their victim, and the _Kore_ ’s family was leaving the field, unaware of the distressed young man behind them.

Finally, the red haired kid found his voice. He ran out into the field to where the portal had just closed up, shouting the whole way there, “Marinette! Fuck, where did you just go?”

“Sir,” the man at Claude’s side said, “What should we do about him?”

Claude considered. “I think this boy may be useful to us. He may be willing to hear out our cause.”

“Are you saying we should recruit him?”

“Maybe not recruit him,” Claude dismissed. No, the boy’s aura was all wrong for one of his warriors. “But he may be helpful to us still.” He just had to show the boy their path of righteousness, and his plan may be even more successful than he had originally thought.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Even if I lose the game  
>  I'm all in tonight  
> Yeah, I'm all in, I'm all in for life. _


	5. Tears from Heaven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aozora no Namida by Hitomi Takahashi  
> https://youtu.be/zuwf1EoqxCk

Nathaniel knew he was going crazy. He had definitely not seen Marinette walk through a random portal to God knows where.

Right?

He sank to his knees in the middle of the clearing where he’d seen his friend vanish right before his eyes and tried to wrap his head around all of this.

Tears prickled at his eyes. He clasped at his head.

“This can’t be real.” He whispered.

Marinette’s parents had been there, right? They’d seen what happened. And Alya. Alya was there, too. They had to have the answers. They could tell him what was happening.

* * *

The portal into the Second Realm was nothing like Marinette expected.

Of course, she didn’t really know what to expect from anything anymore.

It felt like she was still walking on a flat surface, but when she looked down, her feet weren’t touching anything. All around her was a shimmering violet tunnel with a bright white light at the end. It was like a carnival fun house.

“Tikki,” Marinette called over her shoulder nervously, looking for her friend to reassure her.

“Don’t worry, Marinette,” the Kwami called back, “Just keep walking forward and we’ll be there soon.”

“This is weird.”

Tikki giggled. “You’ll get used to it.”

Somehow, Marinette doubted that. Though, she was traveling to another realm with three demons behind her and somehow that thought didn’t send a wave of fresh panic through her soul, so maybe Tikki was right.

As the end of the tunnel grew closer, Master Fu drew up to Marinette’s side. “Before we arrive, there are a couple of rules you should know about.”

“You mean in addition to the contract I signed and sent over?”

“The contract is to protect the interest of both parties involved. These rules are intended to keep you in particular safe during your time in our realm.”

“Alright,” Marinette said. “What are these rules?”

“First, do not leave the castle without a guard. Things in this world are not safe for humans, especially not for the _Kore_. There are those who may want to abuse your power. Until you have a stable control on it yourself, you need to be protected. We will introduce you to the captain of the royal guard. He will ensure your protection.”

“Is he another Kwami?” Marinette asked. She’d seen in the book of history she’d been given that the majority of the castle guards, knights, and warriors were those three-formed demons. They were supposed to be one of the most powerful breeds, and the most suited to combat.

“Surprisingly no. He is a normal demon, but an exceptionally powerful one.”

Marinette nodded at his explanation.

“The second rule: Do not consume any food from the Second Realm, at least not during the probationary period. If you eat anything that is from the demon realm, you will be forever tied to it. You won’t be able to just leave. Instead, food will be brought to you from your world. These meals that your parents prepared for you will be very useful. It was kind of them.”

“My parents understand how important food is. It brings people together. For my family, food is home.” Marinette smiled fondly at memories that flooded her mind of her father teaching her how to bake, or her mother putting recipes from her own childhood on the dinner table. Growing up in a _patisserie_ came with an inherent love for food.

“Your parents are smart people. Which brings us to our final rule: if you would like to communicate with your family, just tell someone. Tell Tikki, or one of the other knights, or even the prince. We are here to help you, not cut you off from your world and spirit you away.”

“That’s a common misunderstanding about demons,” Tikki added. “We have no need or desire to kidnap humans.”

Marinette was beginning to wonder what the true relationship between humans and demons really was. She had plenty of time to find out, she supposed.

The light at the end of the tunnel grew closer. They were about to arrive.

Marinette wasn’t sure what to expect. She had gone over thousands of scenarios in her head about how this arrival would go, each one more ridiculous than the last. After her overactive imagination had started conjuring images of what her fiance could possibly look like, she had been too afraid to actually open the envelope with his picture in it. What if he was like the demons in the horror movies with grotesquely sharp teeth, pitch black eyes, and talon like claws? Was her life destined to turn into a B-rated horror flick? She’d been plagued with nightmares of orcs and men with bat wings, and flesh eating monsters. Sure, Tikki and Wayzz and Master Fu seemed harmless enough, but when Marinette imagined the Prince of the Demon Realm, she figured he had to be the most fearsome and powerful of them all.

Marinette’s blood ran cold. Her legs shook as she struggled to stand up right as a powerful wave of dread came over her. She needed a distraction.

“What is my fiance’s name? I looked over the contract and through the book, but all he was called was The Prince or The Black Cat. It doesn’t give his name.” Marinette wanted to smack herself. That wasn’t exactly the distraction she had been looking for.

“You will have to ask him that yourself, _Mademoiselle_ ,” Wayzz said from the rear of their party. “A demon’s name holds their power. It is not up to any of us to give you his name without his blessing first.”

“But I already know all of your names…” Marinette mused.

“We have given you our names as a sign of our trust in you,” Master Fu said gently.

“You will meet him, soon, Marinette,” Tikki reassured her.

Marinette was sure that Tikki’s words were meant to be comforting, but they did little to calm her nerves. Despite her intense research on the Second Realm, she had very little knowledge on what she was walking into. The book Fu had given her had a lot of information on people and basic history, but very little on the realm itself and its culture.

So here she was, blindly trusting a band of demons that she’d only just met to lead her through a magic portal and decide her entire future.

Suddenly, all of her life choices seemed like giant mistakes, and like this whole thing was a bad idea.

Her legs were still shaking, and a wave of nausea overcame her. She was just about ready to tell Master Fu and the others that she’d made a horrible mistake, and it she needed to go home, when they reached the end of the tunnel. Instead of opening up to reveal whatever was on the other side, there was a wall of white light.

“This is it,” Master Fu said. “I will not continue beyond this point, as I have to put these materials you brought me to good use for your mother, but Tikki and Wayzz will get you settled in on the other side.”

Marinette thanked Master Fu for his guidance, and for the help with her mother. He gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze and promised to check in with her regularly, before leaving her side.

She could feel Tikki and Wayzz come close behind her, waiting for her to make the first move. She nearly looked back at them, but knew if she did she would go running back after Master Fu.

So she faced forward.

“There’s nothing to fear, Marinette,” Tikki said soothingly. “The Captain of the Royal Guard will be waiting for us on the other side. You’re not in any danger.”

While Marinette appreciated Tikki’s attempts to calm her, getting mugged wasn’t exactly the first thing on her list of worries.

“Okay,” Marinette breathed, “let’s do this.”

She put a hand out to touch the exit to the portal. It pulsated warmth beneath her fingers before her hand sank into it, disappearing behind the wall of light. Marinette closed her eyes and took a step forward. Then she took another. She took one more step and felt a cool breeze rustle her hair, and the warmth of a spring day warm her cheeks.

She could hear a set of footsteps behind her, meaning Tikki and Wayzz had exited the portal as well.

“Welcome, Your Highness,” greeted a voice that was neither Tikki’s nor Wayzz’s.

Marinette hesitantly opened her eyes.

The first thing she noticed was that they were standing in a field. It was the most normal looking field Marinette had ever seen, no different from the fields in Champagne that she’d visited on holiday. The sun shone brightly, if a few shades more orange than she was used to. There were no clouds in the sky, but the sky was a strange color, more turquoise than robin’s egg.

After blinking dumbly at the sky for a moment, Marinette turned her attention to the source of the voice that had greeted her. She held herself in check not to jump at the sight of him. He could have passed perfectly regular looking guy, until Marinette looked closer. His dark skin had an unnatural grey tint to it, and the sclera of his eyes were black instead of white, making his gaze seem harsh and intimidating. The effect was amplified by his golden irises that seemed to glow, even in broad daylight. If that wasn’t enough, like the other form Master Fu had revealed in Marinette’s kitchen, this demon had horns at his temples. Behind him stood a row of demons, all wearing armor that kept Marinette from seeing what they looked like. At his side, there was a violet haired boy, about Wayzz’s height, with a pair of what looked like butterfly wings on his back. Judging by his size and strangely colored hair, Marinette could only assume that he was a Kwami, too.

Marinette started to realize, in the face of about ten demons that Marinette didn’t know, that she was in completely foreign territory. She revisited that idea to turn back and run, but the portal was probably already closed by then, not that she was going to turn her back to these demons to check. Her thoughts raced at a kilometer per second as she fought to come up with a solution--either stay where she was or run. She could see the head demon, with the horns, speaking to her, but couldn’t hear him over the sound of water rushing in her ears. Was it just her, or was the sky getting weirdly dark? The world started to tilt on an odd angle as Marinette tried to force her vision to focus.

The next thing she knew, she was on the ground, staring up at a young girl’s round, pale pink face. A pair of wide blue eyes framed by bright red lashes stared back at her with concern. Petal pink lips parted and sighed in relief.

“Marinette, are you okay?” Tikki’s voice asked through this girl’s lips.

The world came rushing back to her, and Marinette became aware of the fact that she was laying in the grass. “Tikki?”

She smiled. “Yes, Marinette, it’s me.” She took a step back and held out a hand, helping Marinette back to her feet.

As Marinette stood--slowly, because she was still feeling a bit woozy--she realized that Tikki was just as small in this form as Wayzz and the purple-butterfly kid. The tips of the antennae coming out of a mass of red curls maybe reached the top of Marinette’s head, but Tikki herself was even shorter. She was actually very cute.

“Are you alright, your highness?” The horned demon asked, approaching her.

“I think so,” Marinette said, holding her head. “I don’t know what happened.”

Another small hand steadied her from the side before she even knew she was weaving. “I think she’s a bit overwhelmed.” Wayzz said.

The small purple demon spoke next. “Sir, would this be a good time to show Mademoiselle _Kore_ to her quarters? Perhaps she should rest before she is greeted by His Majesty.”

“That is an excellent idea.” Tikki said.

“Then let me lead the way.” The horned demon said. He bowed before Marinette, causing her to flush from embarrassment. “The name’s Nino, Captain of the Royal Guard. If you ever need anything, just say my name and I’ll be there.”

Nino turned and dismissed the row of knights behind him before indicating for Marinette to follow. Tikki stayed at her side with Wayzz trailing behind with her suitcase.

“Nooroo, will you send word to His Majesty of the _Kore_ ’s arrival?”

The tiny purple butterfly nodded. In a flash of light, he changed from a boy into a small purple demon with the same butterfly wings. He looked a lot like Tikki and Wayzz had, confirming Marinette’s suspicions that he was another Kwami. Marinette watched the butterfly until he disappeared from sight.

“It might be a good idea to let you chill out for a little bit,” Nino said, his posture minutely more relaxed than it had been a moment ago. “I can take you up to your room.”

* * *

Adrien was pacing a hole into the parlor carpet, and the sound of his footsteps was enough to give Chloe a migraine.

“Can you sit still for, like, two seconds?” She complained. “Plagg already promised to come get you when it was time, didn’t he?”

“We should have greeted her at the portal,” Adrien muttered, “That would have been the polite thing to do, right? Will she think it’s weird that we didn’t?”

Chloe groaned and drummed her fingers on the small tea table next to her chair. “Who cares? What’s done is done. Besides, she’s officially engaged to a prince. I don’t think making her wait a little bit to meet the royal family is too inconvenient.”

A knock came on the parlor door, and Adrien rushed to open it with a little too much enthusiasm.

On the other side stood Nino, eyes widened at the prince’s hasty actions.

Chloe shook her head, thankful the king hadn’t been the one on the other side, though if it were him he wouldn’t have knocked.

“Please give him a status update before he gives himself an aneurysm,” She muttered.

Nino put both of his hands on Adrien’s shoulders in a soothing gesture. “Okay, first of all, dude, you need to chill. Everything is good.”

He guided his friend through a breathing exercise and shut the parlor door behind him. “You cool?”

Adrien nodded, though the manic look still hadn’t left his eyes.

“Marinette is here, safe. She went up to her quarters, and she’s resting. You might need to give her some space for a while. And don’t freak out, my guy, but she passed out when she got through the portal.”

Adrien made a strangled noise that made Chloe roll her eyes. Nino should really know better than to tell Adrien not to freak out.

Adrien took a brief moment to collect himself, "She's resting?" he said, voice higher than usual.

“Yeah, so chill out.”

He nodded and paced back to the armchair, slumping into it in a less than royal manner. “What’s she like?”

“She seems nice. Tikki loves her. She’s made it very clear to all of the guards that she’s not into the whole ‘Your Royal Highness’ bit.”

Chloe scoffed. Only a boring commoner would reject a title like that.

“She’s a little freaked out, though,” Nino continued. “When she first got out, she looked like she was ready to run for it, until she passed out. I’m going to talk to her Kwami and see if I can find out what’s up.”

“Don’t keep us waiting too long, or this one might be the next to pass out.” Chloe indicated towards Adrien’s form slumping further in his chair, his ears flat against his head.

Nino acknowledged her with a nod before excusing himself.

“What a wimp,” Chloe muttered. Only some human would be so freaked that she faints. Chloe never did get why such fragile creatures were regarded with such esteem, especially by the ranks of royals. When she was younger, she’d been resentful of the human domain, and the race’s claim over the position of _Kore_. She couldn’t understand why _she_ couldn’t be queen one day. As she got older, of course, she knew that position wasn’t as desirable and glamorous as her young mind made it out to be, and her jealousy towards Adrien’s future fiancee had ebbed a great deal.

Still, hearing that the girl couldn’t even handle the transition between the realms already was a sting to her pride.

Maybe when she was ‘ _feeling better_ ’, Chloe would drop in for a visit. Just to check her out.

* * *

After Chloe finished her afternoon tea, leaving with some vague comment that she had “more important business to attend to than his moping,”  Adrien was left alone in the parlor with his own thoughts. He had to calm down, and he needed to do it fast. It wasn’t like him to get keyed up like this. He was lucky it had just been Chloe and Nino to see his momentary lapse, rather than his father. Gabriel would have lectured him on proper behavior for the heir to the throne, and Adrien just wasn’t sure if he could sit through another one of those.

What was wrong with him, anyway? He didn’t even know this girl. This was a _trial_ engagement. He needed to make a good impression, and to do that he couldn’t press his own hopes for this arrangement onto her.

After taking three, four, five deep breaths to calm himself, Adrien finally stood.

He glanced at his reflection in the mirror on the far wall. He was a disaster. If his father were to see him now, he would surely chastise his unkempt appearance.

Adrien sighed and ran a hand through his mussed hair. If he was going to make a good impression, he needed to present himself as the collected, put together person he knew he could be. Like the prince his father had raised him to be.

But just because he was going to look the way his father wanted him to didn’t mean he had to follow all of his rules.

Second order of business was to say to hell with tradition and to go check on his Kore. Father's rules be damned. Adrien was the Crown Prince of the realm, and his fiancee was in distress.

* * *

When Nino and Tikki first brought Marinette up to her suite, she honestly couldn’t believe it. There were three rooms, a sitting room, her bedroom, and a bathroom that was bigger than her room back home. Nino told her to take her time and relax to gain her bearings before she met with the royal family. In a room like this, nicer than any hotel Marinette had ever seen in her life, she couldn't see that being a problem in the slightest.

She took her time unpacking her suitcase, putting her clothes into the massive wardrobe. She placed her cat pillow on her bed, thankful she'd thought to bring it. Marinette sat at the edge of the extravagant canopy bed and looked around the room. Tikki promised her that she could decorate the room however she wanted, but seeing so little of herself in this massive, elegant white room made it hard to see this place as home.

Tears threatened to fall again, but Marinette managed to hold them in.

A knock on the suite's main door pulled her attention. She stood and wiped her eyes for good measure before making her way through the sitting room.

Tikki--demon Tikki, with her pink skin and red curls, not the tiny Kwami form Marinette was so used to seeing--was waiting for her on the other side of the door with a tea tray. There were two tea pots, two cups, and two plates of snacks on the tray. Tikki smiled at Marinette, tilting her head back to look her in the eyes.

"I thought it might be nice to have a snack," she said. "If you'd like to, that is."

Marinette forced herself to return the smile, but was sure it didn't look all that convincing. "That would be nice. Thank you."

She stood aside to allow Tikki to enter.

Tikki placed the tray on a small table between a couple of very comfortable looking arm chairs. "Typically, the chefs would prepare tea based on the seasons, but since we will be preparing you food from the Other Realm for you, we used what Master Fu sent over. He has a taste for strong herbal teas, so I hope it's one you like. And I brought some of the pastries from your _papa_."

Marinette sat in the chair Tikki indicated for her. "Thank you."

She took one of the familiar macarons from the plate in front of her and felt the tears prickling as they rose once again. This time, she couldn't hold them back. Trying to distract herself from the tears, she indelicately shoved the whole macaron into her mouth.

"Oh, Marinette," Tikki cooed. She placed a gentle hand on her knee, and Marinette had to admit that it was far more comforting than the tiny nub hands Tikki had been using to comfort her within her Kwami form.

"I'll be alright. I just have to remember I'm doing this for _maman_." Marinette hiccuped and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

Tikki looked like she wanted to say something, but instead shook her head and stood. She went to the bedroom for a moment and emerged with a cloth handkerchief. She knelt in front of Marinette and passed her the soft cloth.

"Thank you." Marinette said, wiping her eyes.

"You'll get through this. Soon, this place may even grow on you."

Marinette bit back a bitter laugh, not wanting to offend the one person that almost made all of this feel normal. "I guess we'll see."

It took some time, but Marinette finally got herself together enough to somewhat enjoy having tea with Tikki. She almost felt like a kid playing tea party, but this was the real deal. If she was going to spend six months here, she supposed she was going to have to get used to this sort of thing.

Tikki sent for some servants to clean up the tray, which of course made Marinette's head spin. She informed Marinette that the formal meeting with the King and the Prince would take place just before dinner before excusing herself, leaving Marinette to stare into her closet with a headache for an entirely new reason.

She was going to have to greet her so called fiancee and a king in a matter of hours. Of course, she reminded herself, this was just a business arrangement to serve both her interests and the interests of the royal family.

With a sigh, Marinette pulled out the only dress that seemed appropriate for the occasion, a conservative, pastel green chiffon dress that she'd made that spring. It was simple and conservative enough to not attract any unwanted attention, or give the wrong idea like she had some expectations of this engagement, but formal enough to be appropriate for greeting a King as a guest in his home. She draped the dress over one of the arm chairs in the sitting room, her thoughts drawn towards the luxury en suite bathroom.

She had a bit of time left before she would be facing the future that had been set out for her, so she might as well take some time to relax. The enormous claw foot tub and array of soaps and bath salts  were calling her name.

* * *

Adrien knew he shouldn't have told Plagg what he was doing. By now, he should know never to tell Plagg what he's doing. Ever.

At the first sign of mischief or rule breaking, Plagg not only encouraged the behavior, but tagged along for the ride. Adrien was honestly shocked that his father hadn't kicked the pest off of the royal guard, family or not. But, in the king's own words, he was a very powerful Kwami, and an asset when he wanted to be.

But the fellow black cat also had an incredible penchant for chaos. Causing chaos, being around chaos, watching chaos unfold, Plagg loved it all. And the straight laced, rule following, prudish model of a crown prince breaking tradition and betraying his father in order to meet a girl had chaos and scandal written all over it, even if that girl would, hopefully, someday be his queen.

So here they were. Adrien was making his way down the palace's east wing towards the _Kore's_ quarters with his cousin on his tail.

 _"You'll need a look out,"_ Plagg had said, _"You can't sneak around the castle on your own! You need a guard. You know, for your own safety."_

Of course, the whole time his eyes had shimmered with that gleam that always spelled trouble.

"You're not coming in, you know," Adrien said, not bothering to look back. "I'm not subjecting this human girl who just fainted upon entering this realm to your nonsense."

"What nonsense?" Adrien could practically hear the smirk in his voice. "I am a perfect gentleman."

"That's a lie." Adrien muttered. He shook his head as he stepped up to the door to the Kore's temporary suite. "You're here as a lookout only. Do you understand?"

"Oooo, I'm shaking in my boots," Plagg joked, "you nearly sounded like your old man there for a second, you know."

Somehow Adrien kept a straight face and refrained from flinching at the comparison.

"Just," Adrien said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Just keep watch out here, okay?"

Plagg grinned. "Of course. I wouldn't want to interrupt."

Adrien couldn't tell what Plagg was thinking, but he wasn't quite sure he wanted to. He knocked lightly on the door into the Kore's suite and waited a moment.

When she didn't answer, he tried knocking a bit louder this time.

Seconds ticked by, turning into minutes. Adrien was beginning to worry. He knocked again. She should definitely be in her suite, and she definitely should have heard him knocking at least once. He could even see Plagg eyeing him from his peripheral vision. She had fainted when she'd arrived, right? What if something was seriously wrong with her? Wasn't it his duty to take care of her? And if not his, he had a Kwami knight with him, and they were sworn by the sword to care for the royal family. If something was wrong, he needed to do something about it.  
Adrien tried the door knob, only to find it locked.

"She could be sleeping," Plagg offered.

"Yes, but we don't know that for sure, do we?"

Plagg didn't answer. Adrien shot him a pointed look and he sighed.

He put his hand over the doorknob and Adrien watched the dull grey energy tendrils wrap around both Plagg's hand and the handle.

They both heard the lock unlatch and click open. Fortunately, unlike Adrien, Plagg's abilities didn't make him destroy everything he touched. At least hanging around with his cousin came with some perks.

" _Now_ wait here." Adrien said, turning the knob.

"Yeah, sure, I do all the work, but it's cool," Plagg muttered.

The lights were on in the sitting room when Adrien poked his head in, but there was no one there.

"Hello," he called out, walking fully into the suite. He made his way towards the bedroom, but kept a respectful distance from the private space. "I don't mean to barge in, but you weren't answering the door..." His voice trailed off as he heard the sound of running water in the washroom off the bedroom and sighed in relief. She was just freshening up.

Recognizing how inappropriate it was for him to barge into a lady's room while she was in the shower, Adrien started towards the door to give her some privacy. He was nearly out the door when a bit of soft green cloth caught his attention.

 _'Curiosity killed the cat,_ ' his mother's voice echoed in his mind.

 _'But satisfaction brought it back,_ ' he countered.

He knew he shouldn't be snooping about a woman's personal belongings, especially an unmarried woman. Not when they weren't yet formally engaged, or even formally introduced. Yet he couldn't seem to stop himself.

He approached the arm chair next to the tea table and cradled the chiffon gently in his clawed hands.

It was a beautiful green dress with a high set waist and a modest sweetheart collar. The bell sleeves would fall just off the shoulders. It was beautiful, and so different from anything that was in fashion in their realm. Marinette must have brought the garment from her own world. It was absolutely gorgeous.

And it was the same color as his mother's eyes.

He brought the fabric closer, trying to take in as much of that nostalgic color as he could. He wanted to fall into it. It reminded him of a warm night next to the fire, the smell of the ocean, and home. A home he hadn't seen in a very long time.

Adrien was so absorbed in his own memories that he didn't hear the water in the next room turn off, or the sound of the door opening.

Even with his heightened senses, he didn't notice anyone else was there until he heard the sound of something clattering to the floor behind him, followed by a sharp screech that caused him to jump right out of his own skin.

He clutched the fabric in his claws and whipped around, his arms jerking as he readied himself to confront some kind of threat.

But he didn't see an attacker. Instead, he saw a very startled, wide eyed girl with a towel on her head and a robe wrapped tightly around her body with her arms clutched around herself.

"Who are you, and what are you doing in here?" She shrieked.

 _Shit_. This was definitely _not_ how he wanted to meet her for the first time. Adrien instantly regretted every impulsive decision he'd ever made, especially the one that had landed him in the Kore's quarters.

 _I should have listened to Father,_ he thought as he tried to force words out of his mouth.

"I-I, um," he glanced around the room and felt heat rise in his cheeks. His tail swished nervously behind him.

Marinette assessed him, her stance guarded. Then she glanced down at his claws, and her eyes narrowed. Her mouth tightened into a thin line as she stormed forward. "What have you done?!"

What had he done?

Adrien looked at his hands and his heart sank.

He'd fucked up big time.

Shreds of green fabric hung off of his razor sharp claws, and the rest of the dress was pooled at his feet in tatters.

He looked from the dress to Marinette’s face, then back to the dress.

He was just opening his mouth to apologize when she let out another ear piercing scream.

“You’ve ruined it!” She said, falling to her knees. She clutched her robe to her chest with one hand and took the shredded fabric gently in her other. “Do you know how long it took me to make that dress?”

“I-I didn’t mean,” Adrien stammered, “I’m--”

She shot him a glare that would have killed a lesser demon. Adrien stumbled back, the rest of the fabric slipping through his fingers.

“Just get out of here,” she spat, tears pooling in the corners of her eyes.

Adrien wanted to say something, explain himself. He couldn’t seem to find the words. Instead, he ran out of the room with his tail between his legs, literally.

He slammed the door shut behind him and clutched a hand to his chest, over his beating heart.

Plagg stood before him, arms crossed smugly and lips twitching into a smirk. “So how did it go?”

The gleam in his eyes told Adrien he knew exactly how it went. “I hate you so much.”

“I think what you meant to say is that you hate yourself.”

He definitely wasn’t wrong.

How was he supposed to formally meet her now? And in front of his father?

Adrien groaned and scrubbed his hand down his face, ignoring Plagg’s peal of laughter. “This is a complete disaster.”

* * *

A few hours later, Marinette had stopped crying and gotten her act together enough to be presentable.

Of all the things to happen on her first day in this realm, seeing a demon destroy one of her favorite dresses had been the worst possible outcome. She wasn’t really sure how the day could get worse.

So now, here she was, dressed in her backup dress, a red, just below the knee, a-line. Her hair was loose about her shoulders, simply because she hadn’t wanted to make the effort to style it. She only hoped that her makeup was enough to hide the swelling and redness of her eyes. Tikki, thankfully, hadn't asked about them. She probably should tell her friend and personal bodyguard about what happened, didn't really feel like explaining the fact that a strange man had entered her room and torn up her creation with his bare claws.

Instead, her Kwami friend supported her silently, offering comforting touches and supportive smiled as they waited outside of the throne room. Tikki had complained earlier that the tradition was stiff and impersonal, to meet in the throne room of all places, but it was a tradition.

Marinette tried to be optimistic, but she was struggling. She was about to meet a _demon_ king. Although the demons she had met so far seemed kind enough, this was the head honcho of the entire second realm. And the way Tikki spoke about him did not paint the picture of a warm hearted person.

“Are you ready?” The tiny red head asked.

Marinette smirked. She nearly asked if she even had a choice in the matter, but was too afraid of the answer to actually verbalize the thought. Instead, she schooled her features and corrected her posture. “Yes,” she said simply.

Tikki nodded to the guards standing at either side of the double doors. They each returned the gesture before taking the handles and opening them into an extravagant throne room.

Marinette felt like she was stepping into another world--again. The glamour of this new world was enough to leave her awestruck and speechless.

The throne room was decked out in white and gold, with accents of grey. Either side of the long hall was lined with square pillars. Her shoes clicked against the grey and white marble floors as she approached the hall, barely noticing as she was announced by name and title. It wasn’t until the King and Prince were announced that she tore her eyes away from the intricate iconic carvings in the pillars and ceiling and look at the royalty before her.

The light from the crystal chandeliers shone off of the raised pomp, adorned heavily in gold, illuminating the regal men standing before her and leaving her in an awed daze..

The Demon King stepped forward first. If they hadn’t been standing in the demon realm, in the Demon King’s own throne room, Marinette may have nearly mistaken him for human, though the steely gleam in his light blue eyes certainly hinted at the power that must lay beneath the surface.

He stood at well over 180 cm, his posture impeccable. His silvery blonde hair was perfectly coiffed back, his morning suit perfectly tailored and pressed, and his expression cool and completely collected.

He regarded her with cold eyes that nearly had her cowering. Marinette fought off the urge to avert her gaze, reminding herself that in this realm, she was being treated nearly as his equal and had every right to hold herself with confidence. Rather than letting his acute gaze intimidate her, Marinette stood her ground, albeit in the least challenging way possible. She definitely wasn't trying to disrespect the man, but she wanted him to know she wasn't afraid of him.

"Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng," the king began, his voice just as intense as his gaze, "We are grateful that you have accepted our contract. I am the reigning King of this realm. Please feel free to let me know if there is anything that can be done to make your stay more comfortable, and treat this palace as your home."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Marinette said, finally bowing before him. "And thank you for your hospitality."

He waved her off, dismissing the praise as a given. "Allow me to present to you my son. I hope that the two of you will get along well in the coming months."

The King stepped to the side, and the Prince stepped forward.

Marinette felt her stomach drop and heat rise in her cheeks.

The Black Cat, as he was referred to in her book, was far from unattractive. He was nothing like the image she had conjured in her head. In fact, he was just the opposite. His blond hair nearly blended in with the 24 karats behind him. His eyes were a shocking electric green that seemed to emit their own light. If Marinette was being honest, he looked like a supermodel. Like his father, he could have passed for human, if it weren't for the jet black cat ears perched atop his head, and the long, black tail.

His attractiveness wasn't what caught Marinette off guard though. Instead, the realization that this was the very cat demon that had just a few hours prior snuck into her suites and destroyed one of her dresses in front of her very eyes was what had a hot rage simmering in her gut.

She clenched her teeth to keep from saying something she would regret and cursed her luck once again. She reminded herself that she was doing this for her mother. Seeing that stupid cat standing before her, knowing that her future was in his hands--claws--whatever, she knew there was absolutely no way this arrangement would continue past the trial period.

Marinette managed to beat down the loathing long enough to properly greet her temporary fiance before the King invited them to enter the dining room for supper.

This was going to be a long six months.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _I wonder what kind of fate awaits me?  
>  I don't want to regret being born.  
> Within the sadness, there is courage.  
> I believe that I can seize the light.  
> The falling tears of heaven,  
> Some day it will change to a smile. _


	6. Breakaway

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Breakaway by Bracelet ft. ZELO  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cP1ckwNuRoc

Adrien was absolutely mortified. He was sure his father sensed the tension between Marinette and himself, but he wouldn't ask about it at least until they had a moment alone.

She was furious, it was clear. He wished he could explain that the dress was an accident, and that he'd do everything in his power to replace it, but he couldn't do that without revealing to his father that he'd actually broken tradition and, well, broken into her suite. Instead of actually addressing the issue like a grown up, he stared into his dinner and tried to pretend her harsh glare did not disturb him.

The food the staff was serving Marinette smelled delicious, and she seemed thankful to have it, especially the bread. Of course, they were careful to keep her meals separate from his and his father's. The last thing they needed was to accidentally cross contaminate the food from her realm with something from their own. Thanks to their rocky first meeting, Adrien doubted she would be happy to be trapped in this realm for eternity.

Their final course was eventually cleared and the staff began bringing out coffee and fruit for dessert. Adrien’s father held up a hand to halt them as they began serving.

“I will take my leave for now.” He rose from his chair. “Please, take some time to get to know one another.” He gave Adrien a pointed look as if to say, “ _whatever you've done you better fix it.”_

As the servants pushed Gabriel's chair in behind him, he instructed them to bring his coffee to his personal study.

And suddenly they were alone.

He needed to say something, anything, to clear the air. Adrien stirred his floral tea and considered the angles he could attack this from. The foundation for a good relationship was honesty, right? So he should just explain himself. Right. So that's what he would do.

Marinette cleared her throat, catching Adrien’s attention.

He raised his eyes and she fixed him with a hard stare.

“Look,” she said, her voice stern. “I want to be completely honest with you.”

Adrien nodded. Yes, that's just what he was thinking. Honesty.

“I understand the contract. I will fulfill my end of it. We can go through the motions. I’ll play along, but I am not here looking to get married. I just want to fulfill my end of the bargain and go home.”

Adrien felt his heart sink. He’s really fucked this up. He needed to make things right before they got out of hand. He needed to--

“Anyway, that's all I wanted to say.” Marinette was no longer meeting his eyes. She pushed herself out of her chair.

“Wa--” Adrien began. He stood too. “But I-- um..”

Marinette barely spared him a glance. She turned on her heel and stiffly stalked out of the dining room, leaving him to gape after her.

 _Well shit_.

That’s not at all how he’d wanted that to go.

Adrien sank back into his chair and glared at Marinette’s unfinished tea. He wanted to feel some kind of anger or resentment towards her for dismissing him so immediately, but really all he felt was sad, and disappointed in himself. He should have known better than to get his hopes up.

* * *

Marinette sighed and leaned against the closed door of the _Kore_ ’s suite. She knew she’d been too harsh, but every time she looked at _him,_ her stomach churned with unpleasant feelings. Why had he been in her room? Why had he been going through her things? And then he’d shredded her dress, and hadn’t even apologized for it! He hadn’t even spoken to her beyond the initial greeting.

This whole thing was a bad idea.

But at least Marinette made her intentions clear from the get go. There were no false pretenses here. She would just suffer through six boring months of being “engaged” to the asshole, then go home. If she could get some fabrics and materials, she could spend her time working on her portfolio. When she returned, maybe she should finally go back to school. She could get into a major design school, let her career take off, and this nightmare could just stay locked away in her memories. Things would go back to normal.

She slid down the door with a shuddering breath.

Normal.

It was hard to think that just a few days ago she’d been lamenting her daily routine, thinking that she needed adventure. This was not the adventure she’d been craving.

Now she couldn’t think of anything except getting back to normal.

That was the goal she was working towards. Just normal.

She curled into herself against the door, and for the second time that night felt the sobs wrack through her.

* * *

Nino tapped his fingers across the heavy wooden desk of Adrien’s study.

“She just, like, ran out?”

Adrien didn’t move from where he was draped across the chaise, nor did he remove his arm from across his eyes. He just nodded. “Totally bolted. I think she was only there in the first place to make a good impression with my father, but the minute we were left alone she made herself very clear: She doesn’t want anything to do with me.”

Nino hummed thoughtfully. “If that’s the case, why did she agree to the contract in the first place? Why even come? It’s not like she wasn’t given a choice.”

“I wish I knew, but I haven’t got a clue. I feel like an idiot.” Adrien snatched the throw pillow from the floor to shove into his face and groaned again. “Why is everything like this?!” He shouted into the pillow.

“Hey man, she must have her reasons. Maybe if you get to know her, she’ll actually come around. She didn’t seem like the type to just blow people off.”

“You met her for like five minutes.”

“But Tikki hasn’t stopped singing her praises since she got back. I swear, she loves Marinette more than she loves Plagg, though _that_ still remains a mystery to me.” Nino shook his head and went to crouch beside his buddy. “You know you can trust Tikki. She just spent a week checking Marinette out. If Tikki says she’s good, you have to believe in that.”

“Ok, even if that’s true, she already hates me, so it’s a moot point.”

Nino shook his head. “You have six months, bro. Apologize. Let her get to know you.” Adrien started to say something else, but Nino cut him off. “Not the uptight crown prince your father wants her to see, but the real, actual Adrien Agreste.”

Adrien blew a raspberry. "Easy for you to say."

Nino flicked Adrien's forehead. "That. That right there is what you need her to see."

"Last time I tried to be my real, genuine, Adrien Agreste self with her, I ripped up her dress and made her cry."

"You made her cry?"

"Her eyes were red at dinner. I totally made her cry."

"Harsh, my guy."

Adrien finally dropped the pillow and pushed himself to sit up. "You're telling me."

"All I know is, behind that mask of perfection you wear, you're actually a pretty cool dude. I think if this girl gets to know you, she might change her tune."

Adrien considered that. They had a rocky start, but that wasn't to say he'd ruined everything between them. He just had to make things right.

"Maybe I could find her a new dress?" He said.

"That's the spirit, bro!" Nino jabbed him in the arm. "We can go to the shops tomorrow. I'll tell your father so that you don't have to."

"Thanks, man." Adrien said, cracking the first smile all night.

"What are best buds for?"

* * *

Adrien was called into his father’s chambers not long after Nino left for the evening.

He wasn’t a child anymore. There was no reason for him to feel nervous in the presence of his father, but for some reason he still felt the need to avoid the man’s gaze. He resisted the urge to fidgit as Gabriel signed off on the last of his paperwork.

He handed the form to his stiff assistant. “That will be all, Nathalie,” he said.

The woman bowed before silently leaving the office with the stack of documents for the next parliament meeting. As the door clicked behind her, Gabriel rose from his chair and paced around the desk to the far window, overlooking what used to be a garden before all of the flowers died.

Adrien stood still in the center of the room, waiting for his father to acknowledge him first. He knew better than to speak first.

“Adrien,” Gabriel finally said, his voice icy. “I’m not sure exactly what happened at dinner tonight, but I will implore you to fix it.”

“Of course, Father.” Adrien said abjectly.

“ _Mademoiselle_ Dupain-Cheng may very well be the human that can fight off the darkness in our realm. Things in the capital city have been getting worse. If we cannot bring balance to our realm soon, you know what could happen.”

“Yes, Father. I understand.” Adrien said, lowering his head slightly in deference.

“If you understand, then please act like it.” The King finally looked at his son, only to scoff in disgust. “And lift your head. A prince never lowers his head.”

“Yes, Sir.” The only reaction Adrien gave to his father’s harsh words was a slight twitch in his jaw. He was used to this by now. “I plan on doing things right.”

“I hope so. Now, about your little outing tomorrow, the Captain has informed me of your plans, and I don’t see any reason to keep you from going. However, I do believe that we can use this outing to our advantage.”

Adrien should have known better than to think that the situation couldn’t get any worse. Any idea his father had would likely not go over well for him.

* * *

Tikki brought Marinette her tea in place of the handmaiden to find the poor girl a complete wreck. She knew the transition for the little human wasn't going to be easy--nineteen was so young in the human world. So she let Marinette vent her frustrations and lent a gentle ear.

She hadn't been prepared to hear what Marinette had to say, though.

Hearing that Crown Prince had stuck into her room and torn her dress to shreds was just...out of character for Adrien. He was always so sweet and reserved, that just didn't sound like him.  Sure he had reckless moments, often spurred on by Plagg, but he was never malicious.

She didn't try to explain that to Marinette, though. She was too hurt and homesick. Besides, she trusted that Adrien would prove himself to her in his own time.

Instead, Tikki sat on the floor with her charge and tried to comfort her as much as she could.

When the sobs calmed down to sniffles, Tikki finally tried really talking to Marinette. They were still on the floor, and Marinette held the cup of tea from her realm between her hands.

"Can I do anything for you?" Tikki asked.

Marinette started to shake her head, but stopped suddenly. "Is there any way for me to get a sewing machine? And maybe some fabric?"

Tikki thought for a moment. She would have to clear it with Nooroo first, but they might be able to do something... "I'll see what I can do. For now, why don't we get you settled in. You've had a long day. And the time change must be very rough."

Marinette tried, unsuccessfully, to stifle a yawn.

Tikki giggled and helped her to her feet. "I thought so."

"I'm just a little bit drained." Marinette said, trying to sound at least a little bit positive. The moment she tried to take a step, though, her natural clumsiness took over and she nearly fell onto her face. "Okay, maybe more than a little."

Tikki nearly called for a valet to dress her for bed, but decided against it. That would definitely be too much of a shock for her to handle right now.

So instead, she ensured that Marinette was able to get settled on her own before bidding her goodnight.

She needed to find her stupid black cat about his cousin's recklessness.

* * *

"Plagg!" Tikki shouted, her tiny voice injected with an unexpected ferociousness.

Plagg stiffened, his tail shooting straight up in surprise. He knew that voice. It was her 'you're in trouble' voice. He hopped down from his perch on the castle kitchen's roof and landed in the garden below to find his wife glaring at him with her hands on her hips.

Plagg rubbed the back of his neck nervously, his ears laying flat on the top of his head. He grinned at her, hoping to dispel her anger.

"Don't grin at me like that," She chided. "What happened with Adrien this afternoon to make Marinette think he's evil incarnate?"

"It wasn't my idea, if that's what you're thinking," Plagg said.

Tikki, in all of her 150cm glory, had a fire behind her blue eyes. "You're telling me that Adrien decided to sneak into the room of a frightened, human girl he has not yet even introduced himself to, and destroy her favorite dress all by himself? She thinks he's some kind of pervert, you know."

"I swear, it's not how it seems."

"Please, enlighten me, then."

Plagg ran a hand through his mop of black hair. "He was tired of following tradition. He was worried about her when Nino told him that she passed out, so he wanted to go check on her, make sure she was feeling okay. He was worried about making a bad impression, but it really backfired. I don't know what happened with the dress, but believe me, the golden boy was only in it for the purest reasons."

Tikki's gaze softened a bit. "So it really is just a misunderstanding?"

Plagg nodded.

"Thank goodness."

Plagg put a hand on Tikki's shoulder. "What, you really think he did that stuff on purpose?"

"It's hard not to worry, what with him hanging around you all the time."

"I'm offended you think I would get into so much trouble."

Tikki giggled. "You're nothing but trouble." She said it with such affection that Plagg couldn't help the proud grin on his face.

"But you still love me, right?"'

Tikki's face scrunched up in the cutest way when she didn't want to admit Plagg was right. Her nose wrinkled and her pouty lips curled into an indignant frown. It was always a sign that Plagg won. He chuckled and bent down to press a kiss to the top of her head.

"Come on, tiny. It's getting late and you haven't been home in so long."

Tikki grumbled out an agreement that they should go inside, and warned him that Adrien better fix things with Marinette fast if he wanted things to work out between them.

Plagg couldn't agree more, but it didn't make things any less amusing to watch.

* * *

Marinette woke the next morning with swollen eyes and the remnants of a headache that wouldn't seem to go away. She wondered if this was going to be her wake up call for the rest of her six months in this realm.

Tikki had left instructions for calling the valet or the handmaiden if she needed anything, but the idea of someone else coming to dress her and bring her breakfast in bed was unfamiliar and unsettling.

Instead, she dealt with things on her own, making her way to the kitchen where the chefs showed her where they were keeping the food from her realm, including her father's bread.

Even a room temperature croissant with butter was enough to make her feel just a little bit better, a little bit more at home.

Marinette ate her breakfast in the overly extravagant great hall, but avoided the massive dining table in favor of a window seat overlooking a large field. The Second Realm was far more colorful than she had anticipated. The greens of the grass more vivid, and the teal of the sky brighter than in the human realm. It really did look a bit unnatural, but not at all unpleasant.

She was just finishing up some sliced fruit when Tikki found her.

"I talked to the King's assistant, and he's approved an itinerary for you to go into town today," she said, a grin on her face. "I thought we could find you some things to make a new dress, and you can see the realm for yourself. Maybe getting out of the castle will cheer you up a bit."

Marinette finally cracked a genuine smile for the first time since arriving the day before. She happily agreed to the outing, excited to get to work on some new designs.

"There is just one catch though," Tikki warned. Marinette had a sinking feeling she wasn't going to like this catch. "The Black Cat and his guards will be accompanying us. Nino filed a request to take the prince into town last night, and the King feels it would be a good opportunity for the two of you to spend some time together."

Marinette considered protesting, but figured that would be a case of cutting off her nose to spite her face. She'd made her intentions clear the night before, so there was really no reason to avoid him completely. Besides, in order to hold up her end of the contract, she still had to at least look like she was trying. Master Fu said he would check in within the week to do some training for whatever _Kore_ abilities he believed Marinette possessed. According to him, that would help her to heal her mother.

If she wanted his help, she would have to help this realm in return, and that included playing nice with their prince.

"Alright. I suppose I can live with that." Marinette said.

A maid came by to take her plate and Tikki sat next to her.

"I understand this is hard," the tiny girl said, "but hopefully we can find some positives for you. The people of this realm desperately need some light in their lives. I believe that if you meet some of them, maybe the light inside of you," she touched Marinette's sternum, right above her heart, with the tip of her finger, "will spread to them, too."

Marinette was still skeptical about this whole 'light inside of her' thing, but wasn't going to argue either.

"What should I wear," she wondered instead.

"Just wear whatever you would normally wear. Our realm is a bit behind in the fashion area, but you should be just fine in your usual clothes. The weather is fairly temperate around this time, too."

Marinette nodded, figuring the pink slacks and black blazer she had on would be fine if Tikki said so.

"Plagg, Nino, and I will accompany you and Adrien as guards, so you won't have anything to worry about."

"Have I met Plagg?" Marinette asked, the name sounding familiar. She'd heard so many new names over the past week that it was hard to remember them all.

"He may have been in your book." Tikki said. "He's a troublesome cat, and a member of the royal guard. He is also my husband."

"Oh," Marinette's eyes widened. Seeing Tikki in her demon form, and knowing her in her Kwami form, she hadn't considered that the tiny being was even old enough to be married. She often forgot that she was a knight, as well. She looked so small, innocent, and sweet in her little red and black dress, and red curly hair. It didn't seem that the nurturing demon before her was capable of hurting anyone.

 _Looks can be deceiving_ , Marinette thought, reminding herself of Master Fu's demon form with the giant horns and dragon's wings that exuded raw power.

"Well if he married you, he can't be all that troublesome, can he?" Marinette asked.

Tikki grimaced. "Never underestimate Plagg. He is incredibly capable, don't get me wrong. He is one of the top knights of the guard, and if there is a threat, he would put his life on the line to protect his charge, but he can find mischief anywhere." Despite the harsh words, there was a softness to Tikki's words that made Marinette smile.

"But you still love him?" She asked.

"Of course." Tikki said, her antennae bobbing atop her head as she nodded.

"Then I look forward to meeting him."

* * *

“Nino,” Adrien practically growled, "What were they thinking? Marinette literally hates me. Why would they throw us together for this shopping trip?"

"Don't look at me, bro," Nino said. He was shutting the armory after his morning inspection so that he could afford to spend the morning out with his charges. "It was Nooroo and your old man's call, not mine."

Adrien groaned. "This is going to be a disaster."

"Or," Nino placed a hand on Adrien's shoulder, "It could be a blessing in disguise. You and Marinette spend some time together, she realizes you're actually pretty chill, you apologize, and everything is golden."

"How are we friends? You're way too much of an optimist."

"You want me to get your good old friend Plagg? He could always balance out my optimism. Or maybe your cousin, Madame Duchess of Depression herself?"

"No, thank you." The last thing he needed was to be torn down by a pessimist.

He just wanted to go out, grab a nice dress or two to replace what he'd destroyed, maybe pick up some roses, and present them as a gift to Marinette. Of course, his father just had to insist that she come along, too.

Tikki was peeved with him all morning. Plagg said he'd explained everything to her, but it didn't change the fact that the woman kept giving him The Look, that one that said 'I'm very disappointed in you' louder than words ever could.

So that, on top of the fact that his fiancée hated him, would make the entire outing awkward and uncomfortable. He was absolutely certain this day couldn't get any worse.

Adrien left Nino to get ready for their outing and collapsed in a large chair in the library. Last night, Marinette said that she would at least go through the motions of this engagement thing, right? That meant she couldn't ignore him completely, right?

So if she was willing to at least talk to him, he would still have a chance to redeem himself. All was not lost, and Adrien was determined to make things right.

* * *

Adrien sorely underestimated Marinette. It seemed her ability to be both polite and cordial, as well as coolly reserved could rival Chloe herself. She did not outright ignore him, nor was she ever blatantly rude, but through the entire ride into town she made it clear that she was doing exactly as she'd said--She was going through the motions.

She addressed Tikki, Plagg, and Nino with familiarity and respect, despite the fact that she'd only just met Plagg that morning, but held Adrien at a distance. And of course, Plagg being the jerk he was, loved the fact that she loathed Adrien. He thought it was hysterical, and Adrien had never wanted to punch him more in his life. He probably would once they were alone.

Adrien sat across from Marinette in the lift. She stared out the window at the passing scenery, seemingly deep in thought. She was quiet, and Adrien had to wonder if that was due to his presence, or if she was normally this reserved.

He wanted to talk to her, but something about her posture, the way her head tilted back to look out the window and she kept her body tilted away from him, said that any interruption would be unwelcome, so he kept his mouth shut and turned to look out his own window. It was probably better to give her some space for a bit.

When they arrived in town, Adrien knew his father would prefer that they all stay together. After all, the purpose of this whole outing was to shove the pair closer together in the hopes that they would get along.

Unfortunately, it didn't look like that was going to happen.

Whatever store Tikki was taking Marinette to was in the opposite direction of the dress shop Chloe had recommended him.

"Since you have not made a formal public appearance as the _Kore_ yet, and Tikki is not in uniform," Nino said, "It is probably safe for you to go off on your own. Just be safe, and if there is any sign of trouble don't hesitate to call for us."

Tikki affirmed the order. Her outfit may have said "carefree day at the market," but her eyes were strictly business.

"We will meet back here in an hour and a half." Nino said, giving an especially pointed look to Plagg.

Both Kwami readily agreed before Tikki ushered Marinette off.

"That went...about as I expected it to." Nino said with a nod once the women were out of earshot.

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Adrien asked, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Neither, but it gives us an idea of where you stand." Nino slung his arm over Adrien's shoulder. "You want to at least be friends with this girl, right?"

"That's all I can really hope for," Adrien said.

Plagg snorted. "Got that right."

Adrien shot him a glare, but Nino ignored him and kept speaking. "You've got a plan to apologize. When we meet back at the lift in a bit, just stick to the plan and everything will be smooth sailing. I promise."

Plagg muttered something unhelpful under his breath.

"I hope you're right."

"Dude, have I ever steered you wrong?"

Truthfully, he hadn't. Adrien hoped that this wouldn't be the first time.

* * *

Forty minutes later, Marinette had bags full of fabrics, needles, and thread. Tikki had placed an order at the store for a mannequin and a sewing machine to be delivered that afternoon, and Marinette felt just a little bit more at home in this unfamiliar place. She felt a little bit guilty at first, not wanting to accept such extravagant, and expensive, gifts, but Tikki promised that it was a perk of her position, and nothing to worry about, especially if it made her more comfortable, which it did. Significantly. There was just something about the act of making clothes, whether she was hand stitching, embroidering, draping, or anything really, that was so soothing.

Marinette had been so stressed over this whole ordeal of the contract and the engagement that she hadn’t touched her sewing machine at all before leaving. Before that, she’d been stuck in a rut, only working on commissions and repairs rather than projects she actually enjoyed.

Getting stuck in another realm with no responsibilities may actually have a silver lining in the form of an immense amount of free time.

“We’ve still got some time before we need to meet Nino and the others. I need to pick up some things for the head butler in that shop over there.” Tikki said.

“That’s fine,” She said, settling her bags down on a bench across the street from the shop. “I can just wait here, if that’s okay? I’m a little tired from the time change still.”

“Of course. I’ll just be a minute.”

Marinette waved Tikki off to the store. All things considered, it had been a pretty nice day. She genuinely enjoyed spending time with the Kwamis. Of course Tikki had become a good friend to her, and even Plagg was worming his way in now, too. He was hysterical, and snarky, and sarcastic in all the right ways. Plus, he clearly cared for Tikki a great deal.

Marinette felt like the past few days she hadn't shown Tikki the gratitude she deserved. She'd been uncooperative and grumpy. She cried at the drop of a hat, and she had insulted the crown prince. Not that she really regretted the latter, but she wasn't being fair to the Kwami who was taking care of her.

Tikki had been more understanding that Marinette deserved. She always tried to make her feel better, no matter that circumstances. Tikki took care of her. Maybe Marinette should do something to thank her.

She was just considering her options when she stretched her arms—sore from carrying so many bags—out to the sides.

And felt her arm connect with a hard mass behind her.

There was a harsh curse, and Marinette jolted.

She turned around, an apology already on the tip of her tongue, and found herself face to face with a two meter tall Minotaur with arms the size of her head.

"A human?" The bull man roared, fury evident in the rumble of his growl.

Several heads whipped around to stare.

"I…uh," Marinette stuttered. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to--"

She was cut off by a giant hand wrapping around her throat, hoisting her off of the ground. His eyes gleamed black, and Marinette struggled in his grasp. She needed to call for Tikki, or Nino, or Plagg, anyone, but she couldn't get out a single word.

"What is a human doing in this realm?" He snarled. "Last time I saw one of your kind, I promised to get revenge for what you did to my sister."

Marinette had no clue what he was talking about, but she did know that she needed to get out of his grasp soon if she wanted to stay alive. She remembered an old trick her father taught her, and prayed that it would work. She tucked her chin as much as she could to loosen the demon's grip on her neck. She let her body go slack, catching him off guard. As she expected, he brought her in closer to his body to get a better look, and that's when she took her chance. She kicked her leg forward and hit her mark perfectly, right between his legs.

The Minotaur hollered in shock and dropped Marinette. She only had seconds to take care of him the rest of the way. He had a major weight advantage on her, and Marinette had to remember to thank her father for wrestling with her and teaching her self-defense as a child.

Tikki had told her all she needed to do to bring a demon running is call their name in times of trouble. She hoped that would work.

"Tikki! Nino!" She called, knowing she couldn't take care of everything on her own.

She still took advantage of the fact that Minotaur was still down for the count. She used her low stance to swipe his ankles with her foot, bringing him all the way to the ground. Once he was down, Marinette said a silent prayer that none of the on looking demons tried to interfere, and stepped over his back. She pressed a knee between his shoulder blades and wrenched his arm all the way back, hopefully incapacitating him until her guards arrived.

Without warning, Marinette was pulled onto her feet, and a flash of blonde stepped in front of her. The Minotaur took advantage of the temporary reprieve from his bindings, and whipped his head around, aiming for his attacker with his horns. Marinette's savior tried to jump out of the way, but he was conscious of her position and made guarding her a priority over his own safety. The horn tore through his jacket.

"Shit," he cried, momentarily clutching his shoulder. "You're definitely going to pay for that one."

Marinette took a step back, recognizing the voice.

A hand landed on her shoulder, and Marinette instantly returned to self defense mode. She grabbed the wrist of her attacker and turned to wrench his arm up his back, but came up short when she saw the face of the man behind her.

"Nino!" She gasped, feeling immense relief at the sight of his face.

"Come stand with Plagg for a moment," Nino said, his voice stern.

Marinette nodded, spotted Plagg at the edge of the small crowd that had gathered, and ran to him.

Tikki was already at Nino's side, stance ready.

"Are you okay?" Plagg asked.

Marinette nodded. "I'm fine."

Plagg gave a stiff nod, and Marinette turned her attention back to the action happening in front of her.

The Prince had the Minotaur subdued, his hair tousled from the tussle, and his tail swishing behind him. A red stain blossomed at his shoulder, but the injury didn't inhibit his ability to confront the demon before him, even if he did weigh twice as much as he did.

Nino and Tikki finally stepped in and took over, shoving The Black Cat back and apprehending the Minotaur.

"By the power of the Royal Guard, you are under arrest for violence against a member of the royal family," Nino explained.

The Minotaur protested and wailed, assuring Nino that he didn't know who they were, and had he known, he never would have attacked, but Nino ignored him. He stood the Minotaur up on his own feet, and turned to Tikki. "Do you think you can handle getting them home while I take care of this one?"

"Yes, sir."

"Don't let her out of your sight this time," Nino scolded.

Marinette winced, hating that her guardian Kwami would be taking the heat for this.

"Of course," Tikki said.

Plagg gently took Marinette by the arm. "We should get back to the lift."

Marinette nodded. She glanced back over her shoulder to see Tikki wrapping a scrap of cloth around The Black Cat's shoulder before following the other Kwami with a slight pang in her heart.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Past failures, taking chances of the greater worth  
>  Strong players will be winning all the way home.   
> Tonight, come awake  
> This is how we breakaway  
> Stay loud, and keep faith  
> This is how we breakaway_


	7. Lean on Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lean on Me by Bill Withers  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEXQkrllGbA
> 
> Art for this chapter by nsart  
> http://nsart.tumblr.com/post/169108799579/what-do-you-say-we-start-over-can-we-try

They arrived back at the castle without Nino a short while later. Adrien knew that, as captain of the guard, Nino would be obligated to inform his father about what happened, or at least report it to his father's assistant. He would have to face some sort of consequence for his actions today, but he couldn’t bring himself to regret them.

Marinette had been quiet in the lift. Again, she had barely looked at him. Was she angry with him for stepping in during that fight?

They exited the lift and walked silently up the castle steps. Even Plagg had refrained from making snarky comments. He was too busy taking care of Tikki, who was wrought with guilt over the entire affair.

Marinette was the last one through the door. Tikki and Plagg both checked with her, and offered to walk her to her room. Adrien kept a respectful distance.

"I'm alright, really," She assured them. "But would you mind bringing me a first aid kit?"

Adrien's head whipped up at her request. Had she been injured without him noticing? Was she already hurt before he got there? Come to think of it, there was significant bruising around her throat. She'd told them all what happened after the minotaur was apprehended, but seeing the evidence of his violence made Adrien wish he'd done something far more severe on her behalf.

"Of course," Tikki said. "I'll have one delivered to the study in the west wing."

"That's perfect. Thank you."

With a soft smile, both Kwamis left Adrien and Marinette alone in the foyer.

The castle was always quiet, but somehow the silence was even more oppressive than usual. Adrien wasn't sure if he should excuse himself, or ask if Marinette was okay.

Marinette was the first to break the silence. "Come on," she said softly.  "Let's get to the study."

Adrien realized she was much closer to him than he had expected, and jolted when her hand landed softly on his good shoulder.

"The study?" He asked dumbly. Did he want him to come with her?

"I need to look at your shoulder," She continued.

"My shoulder?" He glanced at where her hand rested over his shirtsleeves.

"Your other shoulder."

Adrien suddenly remembered the Minotaur's horn tearing into the skin above his right pectoral. It was tied up with the rest of his sleeve, and still bleeding. "Oh."

"Come on," she repeated, pulling lightly on his good arm to get him moving.

Adrien followed her down the west corridor to the study. One of the servants had already left a first aid kit on the wooden desk when they arrived. Marinette nudged Adrien into a chair before opening the curtains to let in some light.

She paced back to the desk and opened the first aid kit, retrieved a pair of scissors, some gauze, ointment, and dressing before pulling an ottoman up to the chair and sitting before him.

"I don't know if a French first aid certification transfers into this realm, but I've been certified in emergency care since _college_ , so I can look after this until we can determine if you need to see a doctor."

She picked up the scissors and brought them to the seam of his shirt. "Normally, I wouldn't do this this way, but the shirt is already beyond repair." She cut through the sleeve that was wrapped around the wound, and the scraps of fabric that were left underneath, and carefully peeled away the blood-matted cotton.

The cool air on the open wound stung, drawing a hiss from the back of Adrien's throat before he could hold it back.

"Sorry, this is definitely going to sting," she warned.

Adrien sunk his claws into the plush arm of the chair as she readied the disinfectant.

The second Nino had reported trouble, Adrien and Plagg had followed him as quickly as they could to Marinette's location. Adrien could have never anticipated what he saw. He could still picture her tiny, 160 cm frame flipping that bull on his back. He'd never been so awestruck in his entire life.

That strength was far more advanced than any human he'd ever encountered. Even so, he'd seen the way the minotaur's muscles coiled, even as she had him pinned down. She only had one of his arms, and he was getting ready to fight back.

Nino, Plagg, and Tikki had been stunned stiff. All of the training in the world hadn't prepared even the highest ranking knights for the force of nature Marinette had proven herself to be. Adrien had been the first to move, diving blindly into the fray, his only thoughts about getting Marinette out of the way.

In the process, he'd taken a horn to the shoulder.

He had been completely stupid, but he didn't regret it one bit.

"I'm sorry," Marinette murmured, pulling away the cloth soaked in blood and disinfectant.

"It's fine, it didn't hurt a bit." Adrien lied. She was right, it had stung, but he wasn't about to admit that.

"Not about this," she said, tossing the cloth to the side. "About before. I’m sorry I was so horrible yesterday. And today. You didn't deserve the way I spoke to you, or what I said."

She was apologizing for before? "Oh," he said, trying to formulate a coherent thought. He stared at the top of her head, where she was bent over his shoulder applying ointment. "I owe you an apology, too. I never wanted to scare you yesterday. Or sneak into your room. I know it looked really bad. I'm so sorry for scaring you, and for ripping your dress. I want to make it up to you. That's what I was doing today, actually. I wanted to buy a new dress to replace it, but unfortunately this realm is a little behind in the world of fashion."

Marinette lifted her head and nearly stopped Adrien's heart in his chest when she actually smiled at him. When she spoke, her voice was sweet, and completely free of malice or contempt. "You wouldn't have been able to find one like that even in the human realm. I made that dress myself."

"Oh great, now I feel about a thousand times worse."

Marinette laughed. It was the kind of laugh that built deep in your stomach and bubbled out uncontrollably. "It's alright. It gives me the opportunity to make a new one, and this time it will be even better. This is an opportunity." She turned back to her work on his arm before he could respond. "This doesn't look too bad. I think if I just bandage it up, and you keep it clean, it will heal up on its own." She pressed a clean gauze pad over the wound, and wound bandages around that. "Thank you for today, by the way. I was in a tough spot and you really saved me."

"You were pretty strong on your own. Even the knights didn't know what to do."

"My father had me in self-defense when I was little. Paris isn't the safest city in the world." Marinette finished taping up the bandages and sat back on the ottoman to assess her work. "How does that feel?"

Adrien tried circling his shoulder. It was stiff, and a bit sore still, but the bandages were comfortable. "It feels good."

"Good." She glanced down at her lap and fiddled with the roll of tape still in her hands. "What do you say we start over? Can we try again?"

Try again? As in, forget what had happened between them? Had she really forgiven him for yesterday? Adrien was afraid to ask, but it definitely seemed that way. "I'd like that."

Once again, Marinette shot him a smile that did funny things to his stomach.  "Me, too." She held out her right hand to him. "I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Human. My parents own a bakery-slash-patisserie in Paris, and I enjoy making clothes and gardening."

Adrien felt his smile grow in response to hers. He took her hand in his own. "Nice to meet you, Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng.” Something in her grip made him want to take a risk. He wanted to show her that he trusted her, and that he wanted her to trust him. For a demon, he could think of one way to do that. “My name is Adrien Agreste, Demon of Darkness and Chaos, Crown Prince of the Second Realm. I like sweet things and watching things grow."

Marinette’s eyes grew wide at his introduction, not having expected him to tell her his name. Her cheeks were painted a pale pink and she glanced away for just a moment before coming back with a teasing tone. "Oooh Demon of Darkness and Chaos. That explains a few things." 

Adrien smirked. "You haven't seen anything yet." His tone turned serious as his eyes were drawn to the marks around her neck. He started to reach for her, but remembered the way his touch only ever seemed to make these things worse and thought better of it. "How are you feeling? Does that hurt?"

Marinette rubbed her throat gently and averted her eyes again. "A bit," she admitted reluctantly. "But it's not bad. I'll manage. I may need to wear a scarf for a while, though."

"Are you sure you don't need anything for the pain? I'm sure we can get something for it--"

Marinette put a hand on Adrien's. "I'm fine, really. It's not that bad."

He wanted to argue. Really, it was a miracle she still had her voice after that kind of trauma to her neck.

"It's strange, though. I feel like the bruising should be worse. I guess I'm just lucky."

It was more than luck, Adrien thought. This was the power of the _Kore_. By all rights, she should be much worse off than she was, but somehow she, a human, had made it out of a confrontation with one of the strongest demons in their realm. She had temporarily subdued him and only had some bruises to show for it. This was the power of the light within her. Adrien had seen it in action. There was no doubt in his mind that this girl was the real deal.

_ 'Master Fu sure knows how to pick them,' _

Marinette put the rest of the first aid supplies away, bundling Adrien’s ruined shirt for the trash. “I should return this to Tikki,” she murmured. “Make sure not to use your arm too much. You should rest it so that it can heal properly.”

Adrien nodded, resisting the urge to rub at the wound. 

Marinette stood and made her way to the door, but paused with her hand on the door knob. “And Adrien,”

Adrien started at the sound of his name. “Y-yes?” He asked.

“Thank you,” she said, a soft smile on her face, “for telling me your name.”

Without another word or moment of hesitation, Marinette left Adrien in the study. 

His perfect posture collapsed and he sank into the couch. His heart was racing. That conversation had been far more terrifying than facing the Minotaur, but he couldn’t bring himself to regret either of those things. 

She wanted to be friends.

That thought alone was enough to bring a smile to his face. It had been so long since he’d made a friend that wasn’t also a part of the castle staff or a member of his family. 

Adrien had seen a whole new side of Marinette today, one that he was rather fond of. She was a truly powerful human being. And that smile of her’s...She was really so expressive. That last shy little smile made his heart jump. He looked forward to seeing more of those little smiles over the next few months. 

"Ooh," Plagg said, coming up behind his chair and resting his elbow on Adrien's good shoulder. "Somebody's in love!"

Adrien scoffed and shrugged him off. "Come on, Plagg, she's just a friend." As soon as the words left his mouth, he realized the implications of them. After starting over, there had been something playful about Marinette, something light hearted that excited him. "She's a friend."

Plagg rolled his eyes. “Whatever you say, Romeo.” He nudged his charge’s foot. “Now come on, we have a report to make to your father.”

* * *

Nathaniel felt rage unlike anything he had ever felt rising in the pit of his stomach. For the past two days, he'd done nothing but try to figure out what had happened to Marinette in the park that night.

She'd vanished. He'd seen it with his own eyes. In a flash of light, one of his best friends had disappeared, and he couldn't figure out where she had gone.

To make things worse, no one else seemed to be worried about it at all!

That next morning, when he'd gone to the bakery to see her, completely convinced it had all just been a weird dream spurred on by too many late night sci-fi marathons, her parents said she'd just gone away for a while, and it was nothing to worry about, but the dark circles around both of their eyes told a different story entirely. 

Nathaniel knew he saw them there that night. They watched as she just stepped into that light with some old man. Unfortunately, the two of them were sticking to their story. 

So he’d gone to Alya. He knew she wouldn’t lie to him.

He’d stood in the tiny kitchen of her apartment, his cup of coffee all but forgotten on the counter as he looked at one of his closest friends with desperate eyes. 

“I know you were there, Alya,” He’d said, “I saw you. The Dupain-Chengs won’t tell me what happened, but I’m begging you, please tell me what is going on? Where is Marinette?”

Alya had sighed and leaned against the counter. She’d agreed to tell him, but only if he promised not to freak out. Once he agreed, she told him something that made his visions of portals in the park seem sane. 

According to Alya, earlier that week an old Chinese man approached Marinette with a deal: He wanted her to marry a demon prince. Apparently, that green haired kid that had been stalking Marinette for the past couple of weeks was some sort of demon apprentice or something, scouting out the next demon bride. 

Instead of rejecting the offer like any normal person, Marinette had agreed to think about it. 

Then Sabine got sick. 

To be fair, she hadn’t been acting like herself lately. Nathaniel hadn’t wanted to say anything because it would have been rude, but Sabine seemed to get tired so easily lately. She’d lost the rosy glow in her cheeks and it seemed like even simple tasks exhausted her. That all made sense when Nathaniel heard news of her cancer diagnosis. 

Alya told him that after Marinette heard what was happening from the Doctor, she intended to turn the demon’s offer down completely, but the old man made her a deal: Accept the engagement, and he would cure her mother.

The whole thing sounded ridiculous, like something out of an anime. Nathaniel had left Alya’s apartment in a daze, the world passing by him in a blur. He didn’t want to believe what Alya was telling him, but she’d said it so frankly that he hadn’t been able to argue.

Now, back in his apartment, the hurt was beginning to sink in.

Marinette had been in trouble. She’d been forced into a desperate situation, her mother was sick, and she was clearly being threatened by that old man. 

Nathaniel sank to his knees in the middle of the floor, clutching his aching head. She should have come to him. Did she not trust him with her secrets? No, that wasn’t it. They were best friends. They told each other everything. So why hadn’t she told him about this?

The answer was obvious. That demon must have put her under his spell the minute he first made contact. Poor Marinette never stood a chance. Her parents, and maybe Alya, too. He must still have control over them. Why else would they be so calm and nonchalant about this? 

Alya told him that Marinette had wanted to say goodbye, but ran out of time. 

That couldn’t be true, though. Marinette cared about him right? They’d been friends since _college_. They stayed together even through _lycee._ He thought they shared most everything. Maybe he had overestimated their relationship? Maybe he was the only one who saw things that way.

No, that wasn't right. He knew Marinette cared about him. This was all the demon’s doing.

Nathaniel turned back to his easel where his most recent painting was still drying. In an attempt to convince himself that it wasn't real, he'd painted the portal in the park. Marinette had one hand extended towards it as she prepared to step through. The more he stared at the painting, the more the weight of the situation sank into him.

Marinette’s soul was being stolen by a demon. She had been spirited away to the demon world where she would be forced to marry some demon king. No one seemed at all alarmed by this except him, which could only mean one thing: Nathaniel was going to have to save her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Lean on me when you're not strong_  
>  I'll be your friend I'll help you carry on  
> For it won't be long til I'm gonna need  
> Somebody to lean on.


	8. One Foot in Front of the Other

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One Foot by Walk the Moon  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05v4nfUmBYI

Her heart was pounding. Her bare feet slapped loudly against the marble floors, and the only thought in her mind was making it around that next corner before he caught up to her.

Unfortunately, she wasn't quite quick enough. She could hear his sinister chuckle just a few meters behind her.

Her heart thudded even harder. She was so close, if she could just--

But she was too late. Before Marinette could round the corner, she felt his clawed hand at her waist, and they both tumbled to a heap on the floor.

"Eeep!" Marinette squeaked inelegantly as Adrien toppled her over.

"I win!" He cheered, pumping a fist in the air.

"That's not fair," she said, pushing herself up into a sitting position. "You must have cheated."

"Don't be a sore loser, Marinette." He got to his feet and helped her to hers as well. "You owe me some of your father's macaron stash this week."

She stuck her tongue out petulantly. "He only sends twelve of those."

"A deal's a deal." He shrugged.

"Fine!" she rolled her eyes. As if she wouldn't have shared them anyway.

Ever since they cleared up their misunderstandings a few weeks ago, Marinette and Adrien had spent quite a lot of time together. Things had been tense and awkward at first. They were both wary after their disastrous first meeting. Once that layer of discomfort had been pushed aside, though, they found that they got along amazingly.

The King kept the two of them under fairly close watch, especially since the incident in town that had left both of them with minor injuries. They were rarely allowed to leave the castle, and even discussions of a possible engagement announcement were put on hold. Thus, the only people aside from staff, family, and the rare nobleman that they had to talk to was each other.

Marinette wasn't sure if the circumstances and relative isolation from the outside world or their natural chemistry was what brought them together, but either way, her stay in the second realm was infinitely more enjoyable than she had ever expected it to be. She was always caught off guard by how much she was enjoying herself. The only thing she looked forward to more everyday than spending time with her unlikely friend was receiving news from her parents on her mom's condition.

Master Fu had made good on his promise. Her tears had been the key ingredient to some kind of potion that Master Fu gave to help cure her illness. Fortunately, it had helped Sabine's body fight off most of the cancer without any medical interference. She wasn't completely healed yet, but Master Fu claimed that if Marinette honed the abilities of the _Kore_ , she would be able to help her mother herself within a matter of months.  He'd sent a message with Wayzz that he would be coming periodically for training sessions to gauge Marinette's natural ability.

And that's how Marinette and Adrien found themselves racing down the castle corridor. The only way Adrien could convince Marinette, who was about as far from a morning person as one could be despite having grown up in a bakery, to get out of bed early for her meeting was to tune into her competitive nature.  As long as Adrien's father didn't catch them, at least. The King was an incredibly strict man, and were he to see the heir to his throne behaving in such a rowdy and improper manner, he would be furious.

"I should really get to the library," Marinette mused, "Master Fu may already be waiting."

"Don't want to keep him waiting." Adrien agreed. “I have to patrol the grounds with the Guard in a half hour anyway.”

"You’re not even a real officer,” she teased, flicking one of the ribbons on the chest of his uniform. “Why do you always go through the motions of Royal Guard duty?”

“I’m wounded,” he said dramatically, “I’ll have you know, I’ve been training with the Guard since I was a teenager. I could probably take Nino’s job if I wanted to.”

Marinette laughed. “As if your father would ever let his heir hold such a dangerous title as Captain of the Guard.”

Adrien grimaced. “You’ve got that right. Although, jokes aside, if I hadn’t been born a prince, I probably would have worked my way into the Guard anyway. The work is interesting. I don’t mind a decorative position if it means I get to work and train alongside them occasionally. It’s far more interesting than the political side of being a prince.”

There was that look in his eyes again. Marinette had seen it before when he talked about his duties as the heir to the throne. There was this haunted look, like he was trapped with no hope of escaping. She hated it.

Seeing it now, Marinette knew she needed to do something to take his mind off of his duty to his realm.

“Well, _Monsieur_ Decorative Title, I'm still expecting a rematch tonight." She said, pinning him with a challenging stare. “I'll definitely beat you this time.”

Adrien chuckled, the haunted look replaced with playful competitiveness. “We’ll see about that. You're fast, but I have the advantage.”

Marinette rolled her eyes. Demon or not, he had his limits, and she was determined to push them.

Marinette waved him off and excused herself. Wayzz was waiting for her outside the library doors, which meant that Master Fu was already inside. Marinette hoped she hadn't kept him waiting too long. She greeted the Kwami, and he smiled warmly at her before letting her in.

As expected, Master Fu was seated in one of the overly plush chairs with two tea sets settled next to him on the side table, one of which was presumably specifically for Marinette.

“Thank you for coming, Mademoiselle,” Fu said, taking a sip from a delicate looking tea cup.

“I hope I haven’t kept you waiting too long,” Marinette said sheepishly. She glanced around the library, unsure of what she should do with herself, until Master Fu indicated for her to bring over a nearby chair and have some tea.

“Not at all. I arrived a bit early to speak with the King’s assistant about how things have been for you. She tells me things have been going well, but I would like to hear from you as well.”

Marinette pulled her chair a bit closer to him and sat down. She figured he was going to ask this question. She clasped her hands in her lap and considered her answer carefully. “It has definitely taken some adjustment, and it hasn’t been exactly easy. There’s very little technology to communicate with my family and friends, and sometimes staying in the castle twenty four hours a day can be taxing. I miss my life back home, and I wish I could at least talk to my parents on the phone, but the Royal Guard especially has been very supportive and kind. The Kwami feel more like friends than people assigned to protect me.”

She saw Master Fu nodding from the corner of her eye. “And how are things with the royal family?”

Marinette rubbed her hands together and bit her cheek to stop her grin. “Adrien is a wonderful friend. I admit that at first I was a bit wary of him, but I don’t think I really understood him at that time. I worry about him, though. The king never seems to see him. I think his father’s assistant talks to him more. He’s locked up in this castle as much as I am, and he has been for longer than I’ve been here. He never complains about it, but I can see something there in his eyes, like a loneliness or something. I don’t really know, but that’s what I think. It makes me want to help him.” She stared at her hands and remembered the far away look in Adrien’s eyes when he thought she wasn’t looking. He would stare out a window and his eyes would search for something in the distance. Master Fu made a sound of understanding that made Marinette realize what she’d said. “I-I’m still not sure what that means for our contract,” she said quickly. “He’s a good person, but more than anything, I still just want to go home.”

Fu’s eyes softened around the edges. “I understand your homesickness, Marinette. Hopefully I have brought you something that can help with that.” He rose from his chair and retrieved a box from a top of a trunk next to the nearest book case. “This is a care package from your family. They sent it along with this week’s food delivery. And I have added a little something extra for you myself.”

He placed the box on the table in front of Marinette.

Along with the usual supply of macarons, croissants, and teas were some of her fall clothes and wrapped gifts. Marinette held back her tears, deciding to wait until she returned to her suite before letting her emotions flow over. She didn’t want anyone to see her cry anymore. Not after the dramatics of her first couple of weeks.  

With baited breath, she took out the largest of the gifts.

Instantly, she wished she had waited as the tears threatened to spill.

Her mother had put together a scrapbook to remind her of home. As soon as she realized what she was holding, she clutched the book to her chest and refrained from opening it just yet.

Her father had prepared some of the newest, in season scarves along with her fall jackets, folded and packed tightly in the box. They all still smelled like her room. There was the scent of flowers from her garden, and bread from the bakery. It smelled like home.

“There’s one last thing,” Master Fu said. He placed a small box in her hands, similar to the one the _Kore’s_ earrings had come in.

Marinette opened the box cautiously, in case another Kwami popped out. Fortunately, there were no demon style surprises this time. Instead, there was a phone charm. Dangling from the red crystal dust plug was a little silver chain holding red and pink roses. At the very bottom was a ladybug shaped charm with the dots resembling the same pattern as the black diamonds in her earrings.

“This is very nice,” she said, unsure of what else to say.

“It is more than it seems,” Master Fu explained, removing the charm from the box in her hands. “This charm acts as a bridge between the worlds. Any device you plug this into will work as normal. Think of it like a power converter, but for communication waves.”

Marinette held the charm in her hands like it was the most precious jewel she had ever seen. The tears that had prickled at her eyes before were ready to spill over, but Marinette somehow held them back.  Master Fu motioned for her to hand him her cellphone, which she still carried daily even though it never worked, simply out of habit. Marinette passed the till then useless brick to him. “So, I can talk to my parents with that?”

“Yes. It is still experimental, but--”

Master Fu didn’t get a chance to finish his thought. Marinette was out of her seat, arms thrown around the seemingly elderly man in the tightest embrace he had ever experienced.

“Thank you,” She whispered reverently.

Master Fu chuckled and patted her on the back. He handed her the cellphone, the charm installed, as she pulled away.

“Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, why don’t we move on to some training?” He suggested.

Marinette sobered and nodded. “Of course. What should we do first?”

* * *

After his patrol and fencing practice, Adrien was bubbling with excitement. He jumped in and out of the shower as quickly as possible and grabbed whatever clothes the valet had laid out for him without paying much mind to what he was actually wearing.

Every day since Marinette’s arrival had been a new adventure, even if they were pretty much confined to castle grounds. Today, though, he was going to take her to his favorite place.

Her lessons with Master Fu should be finished already. Although Nooroo had hinted at her begining princess lessons--the same ones on how to be ruler of the realm that had been a pain in Adrien’s ass since he was a child-- she still had a lot of free time. And free time in this realm often meant boredom.

But Adrien wouldn’t let her be bored today, he thought as he buttoned his morning coat. The weather was still nice. A couple hundred years ago, flowers may have even been in bloom. Even without the flowers, though, Adrien was positive Marinette would enjoy herself.

Adrien grinned at his reflection, glad that no one was around to see him, especially not Plagg. That ass would have teased him relentlessly for the dopey look on his face.

Adrien and Marinette had grown much closer in the short time they were together. The more he got to know her, the more he liked her. A faint blush rose in Adrien’s cheeks. Maybe--no, _definitely--_ the word “like” was too mild. Adrien knew full well that he was absolutely in love with this girl. There was no denying it. It hadn’t taken him long, either. Maybe he was being naive, falling for a girl who didn’t want to stay in this realm. Leave it to Master Fu to pick the one girl who would completely break his heart.

He couldn’t help it, though. He’d been totally gobsmacked by her. He couldn’t remember if it was when she’d wrapped his injured shoulder and asked for a truce, or some time after that, but at some point he’d fallen. Every second they spent together, he fell further. Even if she was going to leave him eventually, he was going to enjoy every second they had together.

Adrien ran a hand through his hair, not bothering to style it, and flicked his ears at his reflection in the mirror.

He grinned and winked at himself. “You look like quite the _cat_ ch.”

Someone made a forced gagging sound from behind him. Adrien whirled around to see Chloe looming in his doorway, a look of disgust marring her features. “I thought you were beyond pumping yourself up in the mirror, Adrikins.”

Adrien grumbled a complaint to himself at being caught. “I thought you were going out of town, Chlo.”

“Just wanted to stop by and give my regards to Uncle Gabe before leaving. I wanted to stop in and see the little princess, but Uncle has her under pretty tight lock and key, doesn’t he? She’s been here a whole month, and still hasn’t received visits from the rest of the family.” The venom in Chloe’s voice showed how bitter she was. Chloe was used to getting her way, and not having met the _Kore_ for herself was eating her up inside.

“You know how my father is,” Adrien shrugged, “especially when it comes to humans. He’s been discussing having the engagement ball soon, though.”

“He better.” Chloe gave Adrien a hard pat on the cheek and blew him a kiss. “I’ll see you in a few days. And don’t be weird.”

“What do you mean, weird? I’m totally normal.”

She gave him a pointed look, then looked to the mirror behind him. “Whatever you say,” she said before turning on her heel and waving at him over her shoulder.

Her heels clicked down the marble hallway. She was always like that, coming and going unannounced. Adrien shook his head, wondering how she and Marinette would end up getting along. He hoped it would go well.

Once he was sufficiently ready, Adrien went to his father’s office to tell him of his plans for the afternoon.

Gabriel didn’t lift his eyes from the documents in front of him. “You will take my guard with you if you plan to leave the castle. I do not want a repeat of what happened in town.”

Adrien resisted the urge to roll his eyes. It wasn’t like they were leaving the castle grounds. Adrien knew better than to argue. He resisted the urge to rub his shoulder. He knew he was still on thin ice with his father over that incident, and if it weren’t for the fact that he was meant to be courting Marinette, they probably wouldn’t have been permitted to leave their suites at all. “Yes, Father.”

“And I want you back before dinner time.”

“Of course, Father.”

Gabriel nodded. “I will be speaking with Nathalie about beginning Marinette’s lessons soon. She has been a good fit thus far, and I want no further setbacks.”

“I will let Marinette know.”

“Very well. You are dismissed.”

Adrien gave a slight bow before exiting the office, his father’s bodyguard, a man who had always reminded Adrien of a large, human realm gorilla, following close behind.

When they reached Marinette’s suites, Adrien knocked lightly on her door. It was so quiet that he wondered if she was even there.

As he was beginning to knock again, a soft “come in” came from behind the door.

Adrien glanced over his shoulder at The Gorilla, hoping that his father’s appointed chaperone for the day wouldn’t startle her too much, before opening the door.

“Are you alright, Marinette--” He began.

Marinette was huddled up on one of the arm chairs, a fluffy blanket bundled around her, and a pastry box on the floor next to her and a half eaten croissant on a plate beside her. In her arms, there was a large pink book, and her eyes and nose were red. Adrien subtly scented the air, and was hit with the unmistakable salty scent of tears.

“Marinette, what happened?” Adrien rushed into the room and crouched before her chair. He checked over her neck to see if any of the old bruises had mysteriously returned. She didn’t seem to have any injuries, so what was wrong?

“It’s really nothing, Adrien,” she said with a small, forced laugh.

Adrien gave her a pointed look that said he didn’t believe her.

Marinette sighed. “I’m just feeling a little homesick, that’s all.” She laid the pink book flat on her lap and smoothed her hands over the cover. “My family sent some things that reminded me of home.”

There was a gentleness to her features and a tenderness in her eyes that he had never seen before. It made his heart ache.

“You really--,” he nearly choked on his words, so he subtly cleared his throat. “You and your family have a good relationship.”

Marinette didn’t miss the pained look on Adrien’s face, or the way his ears momentarily flicked back against his hair. Her brow furrowed briefly. Why would the thought of her and her parents upset him? She wanted to ask, but had a feeling that she would be digging into something she wasn’t ready to get into. It would be going too deep.

Instead, she simply nodded.

The smile that graced his features at her answer didn’t quite reach his eyes, and held a heavy weight for such a casual conversation.

“Anyway, what’s up?” Marinette said cheerfully, hoping to cut through the tension that suddenly permeated the air.

The tightness in Adrien’s eyes eased a bit as he remembered his purpose in Marinette’s suite. He rose to his feet. “I want to take you somewhere.”

“Like, leave the castle? Isn’t the king super adamant that we _not_ do that?” Despite her words, Marinette’s heart jumped at the thought of getting outside of the cold walls of the castle.

“We won’t be leaving palace grounds. Besides, I’ve cleared everything with Father. He still doesn’t trust the usual guards, though, so he’s sent his personal guard to chaperone us.” Adrien indicated The Gorilla standing just inside the door to Marinette’s suite.The large man acknowledged her with a stoic nod.

Marinette’s smile was tense. “That’s...nice of him, I guess.” She didn’t really know how to feel. She was still guilty that Tikki and the others were suffering over what happened in town. In her mind, it shouldn’t have been such a big deal. After all, her bruises had healed remarkably quickly. They were gone in just a matter of days, which was way faster than Marinette had expected.

Adrien had healed quickly as well. With the depth of the gash on his shoulder, he should have needed medical attention plus several weeks to fully heal. Yet, he was walking around without even a bandage within a week. Marinette wondered if those stories in the human world about demons having supernatural healing abilities were true.

She shook herself out of her thoughts. “Where are we going?” She asked, placing the book on the table.

Adrien grinned his Cheshire Cat smile that always spelled mischief. That grin was rare, but when he whipped it out, Marinette had come to expect trouble. “It’s a secret.” His tail whipped playfully behind him, betraying an excitement that his otherwise put-together appearance didn’t show. “Didn’t you know, curiosity killed the cat. But you should probably bring a sketchbook.”

* * *

Adrien could still feel his mother with him at the peak of that special hill in the palace’s back garden. He could almost remember the way the flowers literally bloomed in her presence, could almost smell the buds that he hadn’t seen since his childhood. It had been so long since the flowers had bloomed in their realm, too long.

When his mother passed away, it felt like spring would never to the second realm again. The air had been oppressive, and even on the nicest of days there had been a harsh chill carried by the wind.

But things were different now.

Adrien savored the feeling of the grass beneath him and the warm breeze that ruffled his hair. Master Fu was right--having a human as the intended queen did wonders for their realm. It was a physical change in the air that he had never expected, almost like even the air was calmer now just from her presence.

Adrien nearly chuckled aloud at the look on Marinette’s face when she first stepped foot atop the grassy foothill. Her bright eyes glistened with excitement, nearly all traces of her earlier homesickness gone.

Their chaperone hung back a few meters, giving them the courtesy of privacy that many of their other guards didn’t typically allow. It was quiet, relaxing. Adrien was surprised to say he was grateful to have his father’s bodyguard as a shadow, something he never would have admitted as a child.

Adrien was glad he’d decided to bring Marinette here. Experiencing this place with her, taking in the sights with her was like seeing it with new eyes. Over the hill, in the valley below was the capital city in all of its bustling energy surrounded by green hills that evolved into a range of mountains in the distance. The mountains were blanketed in soft, puffy clouds and a fine mist between the peaks that gave everything a dream like quality.

It was captivating, even to him, and he’d been staring at it for centuries. He could only imagine what it must look like to Marinette, seeing it for the first time.

His eyes traveled to Marinette's form, where she sat sketching the field of poppies below the cliff that were just starting to bloom. He'd always been a romantic, a trait his father had often scolded as being unfit for the heir of a Demon King--unfit for an Agreste. But something about the way Marinette's hair glowed almost blue under their sun, and her bluebell eyes narrowed in concentration was like poetry. He didn't want to see that sight through cold eyes. Every stroke of her pencil was a work of art. When he dreamed of marrying for love, he never imagined he would actually be so lucky. Maybe one day, she would come to love him, too.

For now, at least they had companionship.

That is, if she decided to stay.

"There," Marinette said, her bell-like voice bringing him out of his musings. She leaned back on her elbows in the grass and her free hand came mindlessly to scratch behind his ears, a habit she’d picked up only recently. "This is nothing like I expected it to be.”

"What," Adrien chuckled, unable to help the way his ears twitched and he leaned into her touch. "What were you expecting?"

"I don't know, like, fire? I guess I imagined more fire."

"Just--mindless fire?"

"Don't laugh at me. I was expecting it to be more like Dante's Inferno, you know? Seven circles of hell, the Abyss, fire and punishment?"

"Oh my gosh," Adrien laughed. The force of his laughter had him on his side, and tears running down his face. He couldn't believe the image these humans had concocted of his world. "No wonder you were so upset when you got here. You must have been terrified!"

Marinette drew her knees up and stuck her chin on them, not meeting his eyes."Don't laugh."

"Sorry. I'm just realizing that this must have been really weird for you."

"Weird is an understatement."

Adrien righted himself so that he could be at her level, butterflies in his stomach as he spoke.

"What were you expecting me to be like?"

She met his eyes once again and his ear twitched.

"Well," she said, eyes narrowing, "I certainly wasn't expecting you to be a smart talking demon cat-boy, that's for sure. And I definitely wasn't expecting so many puns."

“Sorry to disappoint,” he laughed.

In the quiet moments that followed, Marinette’s hand returned to the top of Adrien’s head. He wanted to savor this moment with her even more. The sun was warm, and the flowers were beginning to bloom after so long, despite the late season. He wanted to lose himself in this moment.

But there were still a couple of questions that had burning at him for ages. If he didn’t ask them then, Adrien worried he would lose his nerve. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“When we first met, you told me you weren’t here to get married.”

Marinette averted her eyes and bit her lip. “Yes.”

“If that was the case,” he said slowly, choosing his words carefully, “why did you come? The whole purpose of the contract is the engagement. When you came, you clearly didn’t want to be here. I know my father never wanted to force anyone to come. He’s strict, but he isn’t a kidnapper. So I’m just wondering why you came.”

Marinette was quiet, and Adrien wondered if maybe he’d overstepped. On the other hand, he felt like, as the other party, he had the right to know what was going on, so he stood his ground.

Finally, Marinette spoke. “It’s for my _maman_ ,” she nearly whispered. Her cheek was pressed to her raised knees, facing in Adrien’s direction, but looking past him, towards the eastern valleys in the distance.

“For your mother?” Adrien repeated. What could her coming to a demon realm have to do with her mother?

Marinette nodded. “I was planning on turning Master Fu down at first. Finding out that magic and demons actually exist is a lot to take in, you know? I thought I was just this normal girl with a normal life. I was going to go back to school, design clothes, live a peaceful, drama free life in Paris. Marriage, for me, was a long way off. I haven’t even had a serious relationship before. So when Master Fu and Wayzz told me they wanted me to marry a demon king--”

“Well, Prince of Darkness and Chaos is my official title--” Adrien interjected with a smirk.

Marinette rolled her eyes, “--it was too much.”

“So, what changed?” Adrien asked. “Where does your mother fit into all of this?”

“She didn’t want me to come. My papa didn’t either, actually. But a few days before the deadline we found out that _Maman_ was sick. Like, really sick. She was going to…” Marinette trailed off, as if she couldn’t bear to even say the words out of fear of them.

Adrien understood without her saying.

She took in a shaky breath before continuing. “Master Fu says that the _Kore_ has a light inside of them, and that light can bring life. I don’t know if that’s true, but he promised me that if I came and just tried out the engagement he would help me to heal my mother.”

Adrien fell back onto his elbows, claws flexing in the grass. “Did he?” He turned his head to face his friend. “Help her, I mean?”

Marinette finally met his eyes. “I think so. I haven’t actually...talked to her. In person, anyway. We’ve written letters. Master Fu did something with my tears that brought her back. She’s not totally better, but she doesn’t have to go to hospitals anymore. He says that I can do the rest myself, but I-I don’t know if I can do it. Do I even have this light in me? And, we just started training today. There are only five months left on the contract, what if I can’t do it?” She groaned and buried her face in her knees. “She’s counting on me, and I can’t even see her.”

Adrien’s heart ached, and he finally understood. If he could do anything to bring his mother back, he would do it, too. Adrien sat up to her level again and shifted closer to her. He hesitated only a moment before putting an arm around her shoulders. He nuzzled his head close to hers. “You _can_ do it, Marinette.”

“How can you possibly know that?”

“Because I’ve felt it.” He admitted, his free hand coming to rub the spot below his shoulder blade where the Minotaur’s horn had pierced. “You healed _me_.”

“What do you mean ‘I healed you’?”

“I should have gone to the family physician for that gash on my shoulder. I should have gotten stitches. Demons heal quickly, but not that quickly. After you cleaned it and cared for it, after your fingers touched it, it started to heal. When I changed the bandages, it was already scabbing over. The next day, the muscle was growing back. It was unreal. Did you know it didn’t even scar?

“I know you may not believe it, but the light is inside of you. Master Fu wouldn’t have chosen you if it weren’t. So please believe in yourself more. If anyone can save your _maman_ , it’s you.”

Adrien could feel the tension seep out of her shoulders. It was like for the first time since her arrival she could let go of some of the worries and self-doubt that she’d been carrying around for so long.

“Thank you, _chaton_.” She murmured, leaning back into the crook of his neck. “I needed to hear that.”

Adrien stifled the urge to purr the way Plagg did for him when he was upset. It was too intimate, and way too soon.

A bell chimed in the distance. The sun would be setting soon. He could already sense their chaperone getting antsy for them to return.

"Come on, Bugaboo, we should be getting back," he sighed. He rose to his feet and held out a hand to Marinette.

She took his fingers in hers and rose to her feet. The touch of her skin set fire to his veins. He didn't want to lose this moment with her. Letting go caused his heart to constrict.

Marinette wrinkled her nose, “Bugaboo? What kind of nickname is that, Alley Cat?”

“Well, your earrings look like little beatles, and you’re like this big,” Adrien pinched his fingers together so that they nearly touched, “so you’re basically a ladybug yourself.”

Marinette laughed, feeling more like herself again. “Did you just call me short?”

“You’re absolutely tiny.” Adrien nodded.

Marinette scowled, but it was hardly threatening. “Though she be but little, she is fierce!”

“Ooooh, breaking out the Shakespeare! Why don’t you put your money where your mouth is?”

They bantered for another moment before The Gorilla ushered them back towards the oppressive walls of the castle.

Their fleeting moment of freedom had come and gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _I cross my heart and hope to die_   
>  _Taking this one step at a time_   
>  _I've got your back and you've got mine_   
>  _...When all we have is each other_   
>  _One foot in front of the other._


	9. A Little Bit of Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chiisana Mahou by Stereopony  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fTj-Jq1XZ0

Nathaniel hadn’t slept in weeks. 

Between trying to convince Marinette’s parents to do something, trying to understand that portal, and desperately trying to get the police involved-- _”Sorry, kid, the parents say they know she’s okay. She really is just on vacation.”_ \-- he was becoming a man obsessed. 

Three and a half weeks. 

Nearly a month since he’d seen Marinette disappear into whatever that light was, and he still hadn’t gotten anywhere.

Whenever he tried to talk to Alya about it, to try to convince her that Marinette literally selling her soul to a demon wasn’t something to be brushed off, Alya would just insist that she trusted Marinette’s judgment. Her parents weren’t much better, either. They kept saying she would be home soon, and look how much better Sabine is getting, Marinette’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain. It made him sick. It was like they didn’t even care that their daughter had been taken from them.

Nathaniel felt trapped. He couldn’t breathe properly. He wasn’t eating, or sleeping, or drawing anything but that damn portal!

He flung his hand out and sent his easel crashing to the ground with a mad grunt.

Maybe he should call Max. He had enough technology, maybe he could find some kind of electromagnetic field reader and figure out what that portal was. 

Nathaniel nodded to himself, confident that asking Max was definitely the best plan moving forward. He grabbed his jacket and threw open his door, the light of the sun momentarily blinding him as he stepped out into the world for the first time in a couple of days. Once his eyes adjusted, he noticed a small, black envelope on his door mat. The only marking was a silver butterfly seal on the back. 

Curious, Nathaniel tore open the seal and took out a black card. There was a line of silver calligraphy in the very center. 

_ “We can help you find your friend.” _

Below that was a ten digit code that looked like it must be a phone number. In place of a name, it was signed “ _The Order._ ”

* * *

Marinette stared at her contact list intently. She reclined on the ultra plush mattress and duvet set into a pile of pillows that made her feel like she was staying in a luxury hotel.

But all the pampering in the world couldn’t relax her in this moment. 

Her thumb hovered over the bakery’s phone number. According to Master Fu, there was a twelve hour time difference between the realms. If she called now, it would be close to closing time. The customers would have left, and _Papa_ would be locking the doors for the night. The timing couldn’t be better.

But for some reason she was afraid. It was a silly anxiety, she knew. Her parents would be thrilled to hear from her, and she desperately wanted to talk to them, but she had finally gotten used to things on this side. She was afraid that hearing their voices again might send her spiraling backwards into depression again.

But that was ridiculous, right? Talking to her parents should make her feel better, not worse. 

“Ugh, enough already,” she murmured, finally hitting the call button.

She listened to the digital trill of the call in progress, her heart in her throat, and nearly threw the cell phone across the room when her father’s deep voice answered with a friendly, _“You’ve reached Tom and Sabine’s, how may I help you?”_

Tears brimmed at the corners of Marinette’s eyes. She took a deep breath. “ _Papa_? It’s me.”

_ “Marinette?” _ Tom gasped on the other line, _“is that really you?”_

“Yeah, Papa, it’s really me.” This time, Marinette couldn’t hold back the tears. Her father sounded the same as always, as if the comfort of warm bread was baked into a person. 

Her father called for her mother to pick up the other line, and suddenly she didn’t feel as far away from them. She curled herself around the giant cat plush she’d brought from home and wiped her endless stream of tears with the back of her hand. 

She spent two and a half hours on the phone with her parents that morning, ending the call with a promise to call again the next day. After hanging up, she texted Alya, hoping that the girl would get some free time from school to talk soon. 

Finally, she stared at Nathaniel’s text thread. She should really message him, too, but for some reason anxiety spiked in her heart. Nathe was one of her best friends, but she’d forgotten to say goodbye. Maybe he was pissed with her about it. Maybe he didn’t want to hear from her after all. Maybe he thought she hated him, and didn’t want to be friends anymore.

Consciously, she knew this was nonsense. Nathaniel wasn’t that kind of person. He was genuinely good, and probably wanted to hear from her. Yet something still held her back. That irrational fear that plagued her heart forced her to write and rewrite the same text message five times before deleting the whole thing entirely. 

She would just message him later.

* * *

The plan had been stewing in Adrien’s mind for a few days, ever since he’d walked in on Marinette crying over her parents’ gifts. His father would probably kill him for even considering it, but he couldn’t bear to see Marinette suffering.

She was keeping it under wraps, not letting anyone see her cry if she could help it. Maybe she didn’t want to bother anyone with her problems or something, he didn’t know. But he could still see the far away look in her eyes, or how closely she held her cellular phone now that she had a transmitter. 

Now that Adrien understood her, he wanted to do something to help her. So he came up with an amazing--albeit risky--plan. 

“No way! Absolutely not! I am not helping you do this!” Nino protested at Adrien’s proposal. “Honestly, I should tell your dad that you're even considering it.”

“That's not a very bro-like thing to do,” Adrien pouted, purposefully laying his ears back and letting his tail hang limp in the most pathetic way he could muster. “How could my best bud rat me out to my father?”

“It's literally my job, dude!” He groaned. “I really hate my job.”

“You love your job. And you're basically immune to my father. He doesn't like to admit it, but you're just about as powerful as he is. He would never fire you because it's better for him to have you on his side than against him.”

“I can’t do it, Adrien.” Nino shook his head, “I’m sorry, I’m not taking you and Marinette into the human realm.”

“She’s miserable here, man,” Adrien pleaded. “If I have any hope of making this work, I need to give her a chance to be happy, too. And the way to do that is to give her a chance to see her family once in a while.”

“So why not talk to your old man about this, then? If it’s for the sake of the engagement, surely he can work something out.”

“You know just as well as I do that he won’t. Sometimes it’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.” Adrien reasoned. He placed a hand on Nino’s shoulder and implored him with his eyes. “Her mother is sick. She didn’t tell me what it was, just that Master Fu was working to make her better. When she left home, her mother was given only a few months to live. Supposedly she’s no longer terminal, but they haven’t seen each other since. That’s got to be killing her. 

“We get along well. We’re friends, and I know she has the light. This girl is the real deal. If she can just see her family once in a while, maybe she’ll be open to actually...staying here.”

Nino studied Adrien’s face. He had a point, about all of it.Nino knew Adrien had a soft spot in his heart for mothers to begin with, but it sounded like Madame Cheng’s situation had struck him in a special place. 

Nino quickly weighed the pros and cons of the situation. He stared at his friend. Eyes set firm, posture immovable, he was the picture of stubbornness. He must have gotten that trait from his father, not that Nino would ever tell him that.“Fine, but we’re not going alone. You will be protected, and you will not go anywhere without a Kwami on you.”

Adrien’s face lit up. “Thanks, Nino! You’re amazing.”

“Just make sure to bring flowers to my funeral.”

* * *

Getting Plagg to go along with the plan had been significantly easier than convincing Nino. Plagg was convinced something would go wrong, and that he'd be needed. Adrien was pretty sure he just wanted to watch the chaos unfold when Adrien’s father found out.

Tikki nearly put an end to it altogether. 

“You're putting both yourself and Marinette at risk by even considering stepping through that portal,” she chastised him. 

“You're not going to stop me, Tikki,” Adrien said, one hand on his hip. “Plagg is already onboard, and so is Nino. It’s definitely happening. Marinette isn’t a prisoner here, so we should stop making her feel like one. You should know more than I do that she deserves to see her mother and make sure she’s okay. So either you’re on board with this, or you’re not. But if you’re concerned about safety, who better to protect us than one of the highest ranking knights in the King’s Guard?”

Tikki glared at him, her navy eyes piercing through him as she considered his proposal. Finally she puffed out a sigh of resignation, making her red bangs flutter. “Fine. I’ll come, but if there is even a sign of trouble, we’re coming home immediately.”

“Of course,” Adrien said sweetly. He picked her up and gave her a kiss on the nose, to which she responded by gently swatting at his arm. 

“When is this plan of yours going to happen, anyway?”

“Tomorrow night.”

“But the portal only opens during mid-afternoon. How do you expect to get across the bridge between worlds?”

“An Agreste has his ways,” He said with a wink.

* * *

The only thing left to do was actually tell Marinette.

They would only be able to go for a day. Any more than that, and his father would be suspicious. If Adrien could take Marinette over the bridge to the other side, let her see her family, and return her safely within a few hours, maybe his father would relax a bit from his no humans rule. 

Ever since Adrien’s mother passed away, King Gabriel had totally severed ties with the human world. There had been a time a few hundred years ago when demons could travel freely to the other realm. Fashion was current, there was a booming industry of trade, and the darkness of the demon realm was something only told of in stories. 

It was a long distant memory for Adrien, who had been a child at the time. Portals across their world were permanently shut, families were separated, and that long rumored darkness slowly began to take over. 

Some of the rural villages of their world suffered famine, crime was on a rise, and there were small rumblings and rumors circling of demons losing their humanity.

The darkness was seeping into their realm, and they were left defenseless to stop it. Adrien knew his father was aware of this. That’s why, as soon as Adrien reached the age of majority for their realm he sent for Master Fu to find the _Kore_. 

They were fortunate that Marinette came to them so quickly, and Adrien had a renewed drive to convince her to stay, but he could never do that if his father kept isolating their realm this way. 

_ Kore  _ or not, Marinette was human. It was clear to him that she loved her family and her world immensely. To keep her cut off from it was the same as cutting off the source of her light, and Adrien would not be responsible for doing that to her.

She wasn’t their prisoner, she was their savior, and he was going to treat her like the queen he knew she could become if she wanted to, starting with helping her see her mother again.

Marinette was in the library working on a new design project when he found her. She had her sketchbook and scraps of fabric laid out on one of the large wooden desks. The fire was lit in the fireplace behind her, creating a cozy atmosphere as she affixed fabric samples to her design boards. 

Adrien came up behind her and pulled a chair to the desk. He folded his arms on the edge of the desk and rested his chin on it as he watched her work. 

She was so concentrated. She drew her pencil across the page in fluid movements, the rhythm of its tapping against the page sounding like music to his ears. It was amazing how focused she could be on her work. He would watch her do it all day if he could. Unfortunately, between all of the lessons his father had him scheduled for, he typically only got to see her during their assigned “courting sessions”. Fortunately, he’d been able to carve out some extra free time over the next few days.

Marinette was so focused on her work that Adrien wasn’t sure she even noticed he was there. She simply went about pinning fabrics, sketching silhouettes, and jotting down notes. Adrien nearly fell asleep while watching her, lulled into a calm relaxation by the sound of her pencil strokes, rain on the windowpanes, and the hypnotic quality of her fingers. 

A few moments later, Marinette put down her design board and scratched him behind the ears, perking him up immediately. 

“You really are just like a cat sometimes,” she said by way of greeting. 

“Maybe that’s because I am part cat,” he pointed out. He leaned into her fingers. They really were magical, always managing to find his favorite spot. 

“That’s a good point,” she withdrew her hand, and Adrien nearly groaned at the loss. “What’s up, kitty? Shouldn’t you be out catching mice or something?”

“Nah,” Adrien stretched his arms all the way over his head, then rolled his shoulders. “This cat is too lazy to chase mice around this giant castle. I _puuur_ fer sunbathing, myself.”

Marinette deadpanned, “It’s raining right now.”

“Your smile is brighter than a thousand suns, my lady.”

She rolled her eyes as she so often did in the face of his flirting, but she couldn’t keep the grin on her face from growing.  “Whatever you say.”

“Anyway, the real reason I’m here is to ask you to go out somewhere tomorrow evening.”

“Again? Are there more gardens you haven’t shown me already?”

Adrien shook his head. “This time we’re going off of castle grounds. I’ve even gotten the Kwami-cavalry together as protection, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

“Well that’s impressive,” Marinette mused, “where are we going?”

Adrien held one finger in front of his lips and winked at her. “That’s a secret.”

She half laughed, half chuckled at his antics. “It’s always a secret, isn’t it?”

“Well, what else have we got to do for fun around here?” Adrien swept his arms out wide. “If I can’t tease you, what am I supposed to do with my time?”

“Hmm,” Marinette held up her fingers and ticked off the possibilities. “You could study your Chinese, fence with Plagg, bother Nino, study human history…”

Adrien pulled a face. “So basically, I could do the same things I’ve done for the past three hundred years. _Bugging_ you is way more entertaining, Ladybug.” He pinched her in the side, earning a squeal. 

“Alright, I’ll bite! I’ll come with you tomorrow.”

“Yes,” he pumped his fist victoriously. “We’ll be out for a while, so definitely come prepared. And maybe take a nap at some time tomorrow.”

Marinette agreed, and assured him that she would be ready shortly after dinner was finished to go wherever it was that he was taking her. 

Now that everyone was on board with the plan, he just needed to get them all out the back door of the castle undetected and they would be good to go. 

* * *

Adrien may have over prepared in his excitement.

He was nearly ready to go an hour before dinner was even set to begin. The only thing that concerned him was his outfit. 

“I’m definitely too overdressed,” he complained to Tikki, who had transformed into her tiny Kwami form and was fluttering around his suites. “Don’t I own anything more...casual?” Adrien tossed the fourth morning coat he’d tried on to his bed along side his tailcoats and several vests. “What do humans wear now? I haven’t seen men’s fashion from the other side since the 1950s.”

“I doubt you have anything that would fit in,” Tikki said honestly. “But it’s not a bad thing to be dressed up, especially in Paris. It’s one of the largest fashion cities in the world, and they’re obsessed with what they call vintage. If we just make a few adjustments you’ll fit in perfectly.”

Tikki buzzed about, removing his cravat and vest. “If you take off your coat, and opt for a shorter jacket, you will look like a high fashion model.”

Adrien looked at his reflection and felt incredibly under dressed. Did humans really walk around like this? Then he considered what Marinette wore. By their societal standards, her clothes were considered a bit odd, but they were nice. If he wanted to fit in, and look like he belonged standing next to Marinette, he would do whatever he could. 

He thanked Tikki for her help and redressed for dinner. His shoulder bag was ready to go. Tikki and Plagg would both be traveling in Kwami form, and Nino would walk though in his human form to avoid suspicion. 

Adrien cringed at the thought of using his human form. It was restrictive to say the least. It felt like his usual power was dulled. His balance was always off without his tail, and he always felt less in control of his surroundings. He didn’t understand how his father and Master Fu went so long in that form without a break. It was...stifling. 

But if it meant he could see Marinette’s world, he would do it without complaint. 

* * *

Adrien and Marinette sat through dinner quietly. As usual, the King took supper in his study in order to work, leaving them to each other’s company. Adrien had to admit, even silent dinners like this with Marinette were far better than the ones he had spent alone.

“Are you ready for the surprise?” Adrien asked, practically buzzing out of his seat. 

Marinette laughed. “I don’t know what to expect, to be honest.”

“It’s going to be great, I promise.” 

Their plates were cleared, and one of the servants asked Adrien where they would be taking their tea that evening. Adrien subtly brushed her off, saying that the two of them were going to take a stroll around the garden instead. Hopefully, that would appease them and allow the two of them to get some space.

On one hand, Adrien should feel guilty. He was lying to his father and the staff that had taken care of him his entire life. On the other, it would be worth it. He was sure of it. 

“We should get going.” Adrien said once the servants had left. 

Marinette was still skeptical. Where could they possibly be going this late at night? She had her backpack under the table with her phone, charger, and a change of clothes, just in case.

Her suspicion only grew worse when Adrien led her out to the back garden, Nino following close behind, and began taking his clothes off.

“What the heck are you doing?!” She shouted. 

His morning coat was halfway off, and his cravat hung loosely around his neck. Adrien gave her a blank stare until he realized what she must be thinking. 

“Oh my gosh! No! It’s definitely not what it looks like!” Adrien rushed to correct. “No, no! I just need to adjust my clothes a bit so that I don’t stick out! It’s nothing weird, I swear!”

“Stick out? How would you stick out?”

Suddenly, Plagg popped out of Adrien’s jacket pocket. “Is it time to go, yet?”

Marinette jumped back. The tiny black cat swirled in the air around Adrien’s head. 

“We’re about to, just give me a minute.” Adrien hissed. “Where’s Tikki?”

“In here!” Tikki chirped. She poked her head out of the pocket in Marinette’s blazer. 

Marinette squeaked and jolted at the Kwami’s sudden appearance. 

“Good.” Adrien smiled. 

“Are you ready to tell me where we’re going, now?” Marinette asked. 

Adrien’s grin widened. “I guess now’s as good a time as any.” He steeled himself and closed his eyes, letting his transformation flow over him in a wave of electricity.

Marinette stepped back as she watched Adrien’s ears disappear. His claws retracted, and his tail fizzled out. Even his eyes changed. The previously glowing green eyes with slitted feline pupils were gone, leaving behind grassy green eyes that looked almost...human. 

“We’re going to the Human Realm.” Adrien said. He smiled again, his usually sharp feline fangs dulled down to human canines. 

“Wait,” Marinette said, trying to process his words on top of his sudden transformation. “We’re going where?”

“You want to see your parents, right? It’s been awhile since you’ve gotten here. Maybe it’s time to visit home for a little bit.” Adrien explained, rubbing the back of his neck, looking more like a runway model than a demon prince. 

God, he really looked _human_.

“We’re going home?” Marinette whispered, feeling a weight on her heart lift. “I can see my family?” 

“If you’d like to,” he said. “You don’t mind that I’m coming, too, right?”

The pure joy in Marinette’s heart came bubbling forth in a giddy laugh. “Mind? Of course I don’t mind! My parents would love to meet you! I can’t believe I get to go home. You’re taking me home!” She hesitated for just a moment before adding, “But how are we going to get there? I thought the portal only opened at certain times.”

Adrien grinned his Cheshire-cat smile. It was odd to see that grin without the sharp, fang-like canines that usually accompanied it. It was almost like looking at a different person. “I have a way around that.” He lifted his right hand to show off the signet ring on his finger. “This is an Agreste family heirloom. It gives us a little bit more power than normal demons, in particular the ability to summon a portal anytime, anywhere, without all of the formality and restrictions of a traditional portal. Only my father and I have access to these rings, though, so consider this a special service.”

“Are you for real?” Marinette threw her arms around human-Adrien, still finding it strange that the hands that clutched her shoulders lacked their usual claws, and that she didn’t feel the twitching of his ears against her hair. “Thank you so much!”

“I had no idea your ring could do that,” Nino murmured.

“Ancient Agreste family secret,” Adrien said with a wink.

Nino shook his head. “Anyway, guys, this is great and all, but can we get going before it’s too late?” Nino urged from where he stood. 

Marinette noticed that he, too, had donned a human persona. His skin was no longer grey, and very tan. His horns were gone, and his golden eyes were now a soft hazel. He was actually quite handsome himself when he didn’t have those giant, intimidating spikes. 

“Of course.” Adrien said. He released Marinette and cleared his throat, a pink tinge coloring his cheeks. “We should definitely get going.”

Adrien looked at the heavy silver ring on his finger. He hoped this would still work. He hadn’t tried it in centuries, worried about upsetting his father. But the Agreste family rings should have power of their own. There was no reason for it not to work.

He lifted his ring and pointed it towards the hedge of the garden maze. “Are we all ready?”

Plagg settled onto his shoulder, and Nino stepped up behind them. Marinette hiked her backpack up on her shoulder and clutched her cellphone in her hands. She nodded.

Adrien closed his eyes. Despite his transformation, he felt his power sizzle through his veins, the silver ring warming on his finger. 

Then, a blast of energy burst forward, creating a portal in the garden hedge

“Alright, let’s get going. This thing doesn’t hold up for very long.” 

Adrien stepped to the side, allowing Marinette to step through first. He would have let Nino through second, but he was in Captain of the Royal Guard mode rather than Best Friend mode, and insisted on taking up the rear, in case of any threats following them through. 

Soon, they would get be in Paris. Adrien couldn’t wait to see Marinette’s face light up when she saw her parents again. Even if his father was going to kill him upon his return, it would all be worth it to see the light in her eyes.

* * *

_ This is a bad idea, _ Nathaniel thought, holding the black cardstock in his hands.

He turned over the sheet, looking for any other markings. There were none, of course. 

He should go to Marinette’s parents, or the police, anyone, really, and show them what he’d found.

“No one has listened,” He reminded himself. “They’ve all been sucked into those demons’ spells.”

He sighed and fished his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed the number on the card. It was up to him. If no one was going to do anything to find Marinette, he was going to have to take matters into his own hands. 

He had questions.

Whoever “The Order” was, it looked like they had the answers. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _After that day when I met you_  
>  The world changed colors  
> The seasons are still passing, but It will never fade
> 
>  
> 
> _I want to reach the far away you_
> 
>  
> 
> _That’s why, I’ll gather the words I want to tell_  
>  And cast a little magic.
> 
>  
> 
> Alright, if anyone is marathon reading this, here is a mandatory productivity/self care/rest break. Get a drink of water, go to the bathroom, stand up and stretch. Thank you for reading!


	10. Iris

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Iris by The Goo Goo Dolls  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdYWuo9OFAw

Stepping through the portal was like stepping back in time.

Her life in Paris, living with her parents, hanging out with Alya and Nathaniel, going to school, it all felt like it happened lifetimes ago rather than just one short month.

She stepped out of the portal into the park across the street from her house, the one with the bronze statue of Mayor Armand D’Argentcourt from her youth. The robin’s egg blue sky looked almost strange as her eyes adjusted to a yellow sun again rather than the vibrant hues of the tangerine sun in the Second Realm.

Marinette spun on her toe to see Adrien step out of the portal behind her, followed shortly by Nino. She felt Tikki move in her pocket, and was sure that Plagg was making himself comfortable in Adrien’s as well.

“Do you sense any danger, Lord Captain of the Royal Guard,” Adrien teased.

Nino shot Adrien a glare. “No, Your Royal Highness. It’s all clear. But don’t drop your guard.”

Adrien closed the portal before taking in his surroundings. Everything was so colorful on this side! It was like the whole world was colored in the brightest pastels. The leaves were colored in light greens, reds, and yellows. The sky was lighter here, and the sun even brighter.

This was where Marinette had grown up.

This was where his mother had been born.

This was the human world.

“Come on!” Adrien was startled by the sudden warmth of Marinette’s hand on his. “My house is just over here. It’s still early, but the bakery should be open already!”

Adrien let her drag him across the street, with Nino trailing close behind, to a lovely glass storefront, displaying the same bread and pastries that came for Marinette in packages every week.

“Are you sure they’ll want to meet me?” Adrien asked, suddenly nervous.

“Of course they will,” Marinette said.

“Aren’t they mad at the evil demons that spirited their daughter away?”

Marinette shrugged. “Maybe at first, but they know that you’re my friend. Any friend of mine is welcome in their home.”

Adrien nodded, but he still wasn’t fully convinced.

Marinette rolled her eyes, too excited to wait for Adrien to get comfortable with the situation. “Come on.”

She grasped the handle and pushed the bakery’s front door open, savoring the tingling of the bell and the wafting scent of freshly baked bread, tempered chocolate, and cupcake icing.

The rest of the world fell away from her.

She was home again.

Her mother was at the register, counting out change, and her father was in the back scoring bread.  

Marinette stared in awe at the change in her mother. When she’d left, she hadn’t realized just how sick Sabine had become. The change was so gradual that Marinette didn’t even notice the dullness in her hair and eyes, or the paleness in her skin, or the unnatural slowness in her movements.

Looking at her mother now, it was like she was reborn. Sabine Cheng looked healthier than Marinette had ever seen her.

It was truly miraculous.

“ _Maman, Papa_ ,” Marinette croaked, her throat thick, “I’m home.”

Adrien and Nino watched, seemingly from the outside looking in, as Marinette called for her parents with wet eyes.

The small Chinese woman at the register lifted her head at the same time the large, muscular man in the back poked his head away from the oven.

Adrien watched in fascination and awe as both parents registered the small young woman standing in the doorway to their bakery. They each immediately dropped what they were doing and ran for her, tears in their eyes.

The two boys took a step back, not wanting to interrupt the scene unfolding before them. Nino was beginning to understand why Adrien had been so adamant about bringing Marinette home.

Tom wrapped his arms around both of his girls as tightly as he could and lifted them both effortlessly from the ground. They all greeted each other with a mix of laughter and tears.

Adrien felt a pang in his heart.

When Marinette’s feet finally touched the ground, the laughter died down, and the tears were wiped away, Marinette turned to introduce her escorts.

“ _Maman, Papa_ , this is the Captain of the Royal Guard,” She said, respectfully avoiding using his name unless he chose to give it first. “He will be keeping an eye on things while I am visiting.”

Nino bowed before Marinette’s parents, being sure to show the proper respect to the ones who gave life to the savior of his realm. “Nino Lahiffe, at your service.”

Marinette turned to Adrien next, who leaned against the door of the bakery, trying not to be overwhelmed.

She could see his anxiety in the way he stood. She shook her head, wondering what happened to that boisterous cat that gave her a new nickname every hour and made puns like it was his job.

She placed a hand on his arm, and implored him to relax with her eyes. When she saw a bit of the tension leave his stance, she pulled him closer to her parents.

“And this is the Demon Prince that I am contracted with.” She explained.

Adrien hesitated only a moment, before holding out his hand. “Adrien Agreste.” He said. His instinct was to follow his name with his title, but worried what Marinette’s parents would think.

He didn’t get the chance. Marinette continued for him. “Demon of Darkness and Chaos, Crown Prince of the Second Realm. He really is that terrifying demon we all feared, isn’t he?” Marinette’s words took on a teasing lilt, and she looked at Adrien with humor in her eyes. “Truly, he strikes fear into the hearts of all who look upon him.”

There was a quiet moment where Adrien could feel Marinette’s father sizing him up. The man may be human, but he was by far the largest and most muscular being Adrien had ever encountered. Even with the help of his own demonic abilities, Adrien was quite sure that this human could crush him.

By all rights, Tom Dupain should hate the demon standing before him. This was the one responsible for taking his daughter away. But there was something about the way his daughter shifted her body towards him, the way she teased him, that reminded Tom of when he’d been dating his wife.

And there was a fine tension about the boy. He was nervous. There was nothing about this situation to suggest that this boy was a monster holding their daughter against her will. In fact, it seemed quite the opposite. Marinette considered Adrien Agreste, Demon of Darkness and Chaos, her friend. Maybe even something more.

Tom could see something in Adrien’s eyes that he knew was in his own every time he watched his wife bake, or his daughter sew. It was a familiar tenderness that inspired an impulsive trust in the old baker.

Maybe he was being foolish, but rather than go on the offensive, Tom decided to ride out that impulse and give this boy a chance.

He reached out and took Adrien’s outstretched hand in his.

The Prince’s fingers were cold.

With an internal curse, Tom threw convention to the wind and pulled Adrien into his arms in a bear hug, nearly as tight as the one he’d given his family.

“Welcome, Son. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

* * *

Marinette’s parents offered to shut down the bakery for the day in light of their daughter’s visit, but Marinette insisted that they stay open. Instead, she, Adrien and Nino all volunteered to help out around the shop for half of the day.

Once Nino was convinced that nothing horrible was going to happen in a small boulangerie patisserie, he relaxed a bit and became his usual, easy going self. Adrien’s case was a bit harder. He still felt like an outsider in this warm home. It was easy to see why Marinette missed this. He felt his heart constrict when he saw what he was taking Marinette away from.

She left this warm, loving, happy life to keep him company in the cold and darkness of his lonely castle. He didn’t blame her for looking forward to the day their contract expired.

Marinette noticed Adrien’s distraction. At first she thought he was nervous about meeting her parents. Sure, they weren’t seriously dating or anything, and she was introducing him as her friend rather than her fiancé, but she understood the intimidation of meeting someone’s parents for the first time, especially considering the uniqueness of their situation.

Yet, even when her father accepted him with open arms, Adrien didn’t relax.

After the midday rush, Sabine suggested that “the kids” go visit with Alya until closing rather than spend the entire day cooped up in the bakery. Marinette snickered at the idea of Nino and Adrien as “kids”, considering they were both far older than either of her parents even knew.  

Marinette took the opportunity to confront Adrien about his strange behavior.

“You know they don’t hate you,” She said once the bakery door closed behind her. “I think my mom even likes you a lot.”

That did ease Adrien’s fears a tiny bit, though he was still wary. “They shouldn’t. I’m the one who came in and messed up your life.”

“You didn’t mess up my life.” Marinette nudged him with her shoulder. “My life has been on hold for a while anyway. I always seem like I have everything together, but to be honest I’ve been lost for a little while. I know I want to design clothes, but I don’t know which path I want to take to get there. And once I make it, what then? I’ve been trying to get myself together to go to university, but the truth is I’m afraid that I’m not good enough. My life had been on hold because I didn’t know how to move forward. If anything, meeting you, going to your world, it’s given me a way to move forward again. It’s broken my routine, and I think I needed that.”

Adrien smiled.

Marinette glanced at the window boxes at the storefront and reached out with a gentle hand to touch the petals of the dying plants. The cold weather was finally getting to them. It was a pity though.

“This is where I first met Wayzz,” she murmured, remembering the weird green haired kid that always asked her the strangest questions while she was taking care of her plants. “I guess that was the moment that sealed my fate.”

“Maybe,” Adrien said.

Things had changed so much since Marinette had come into his life. Part of him was still clinging to the idea that maybe she could love him someday, that maybe she would want to stay with him, but seeing how she glowed with happiness in this world in a way he had never seen from her in his... he didn’t want to kill that light.

“Marinette?” A stranger’s voice called from across the street.

Nino immediately went on high alert, and Adrien felt Plagg at the ready in his jacket pocket.

A disheveled red haired human ran across the street right at them.

Adrien knew that Nino was prepared to take that human down, but he stood his ground. They didn’t want to make a scene until they knew how this was going to play out.

“Nathaniel!” Marinette shouted, excitement clear in her voice.

This human was clearly haggard. When he got close, Adrien could see the sallowness in his skin, the dark circles under his eyes, and his mussed hair.

As he approached, Marinette launched herself at him, throwing her arms around his neck in a tight embrace. The other boy staggered back a bit before catching himself and patting her on the back.

“Marinette, you’re back.” The human said, his exhaustion evident in his voice. “Are you alright?”

Marinette pulled away. “I’ve been…on a bit of a holiday?” She winced at her own lie. She didn’t know how to talk to Nathaniel about this. She hadn’t exactly been in contact with him lately. The last thing she wanted to do was lie to him, but this wasn’t an easy situation to explain, either.

Nathaniel snorted, “is that what you’re calling it? A holiday?” He pushed away from Marinette.

The physical reaction had Adrien even more on edge than he had been before, and he felt Nino tense beside him. He placed a protective hand on Marinette’s shoulder.

Nathaniel glared at them before returning his gaze to Marinette. “Alya told me what is really going on, you know. Your parents didn’t want to. _You_ didn’t even tell me what was happening, and you’re supposed to be one of my best friends! You made a deal with a horde of demons, Marinette!”

Marinette shushed him, trying to get him to lower his voice on this busy street, but he didn’t seem to hear her at all, and continued as if she had been silent.

“You didn’t even say goodbye. You haven’t called, or written, or texted, and I’ve been worried sick about you.”

Marinette winced. “I know. I’ve been a really shitty friend to you, Nathe, and I’m so sorry. Cell service has been a pain. I wanted to tell you, really. I just never got the chance…”

Nathaniel regarded her coolly, then shifted his gaze to Adrien and Nino, standing close behind her. “And who are they?”

Adrien could feel his hackles rise at the tone in this human’s voice.

Marinette knew she needed to diffuse this situation quickly, but didn’t know what to tell Nathe aside from the truth. “This is...my fiancé. And his best friend. They, um, came to town to meet my parents.” A flush rose in her cheeks.

Nathaniel’s head whipped back to her. “Fiancé?! That’s what you’re calling him?”

Marinette’s face fell. “You said Alya told you what happened, right?”

“I didn’t want to believe that you actually sold yourself off.”

“Hey,” Marinette interjected, “that’s not what this is, okay? Look, I know I haven’t been a very good friend lately, and I really am so sorry about that. But I need you to hear me out right now. You can clearly see that I am safe and sound. I don’t know what kind of weird ideas you’ve gotten in your head, but it’s not like I’m some kind of prisoner. I’m happy, and healthy, and I just need for you to believe in me right now.”

Nathaniel still didn’t look convinced. He glared at Adrien, then Nino. Marinette couldn’t tell what was going through his mind. Eventually, he took a deep breath and seemed to steady himself. “Okay, Marinette.”

Marinette reached out to her friend. Nino took a step forward and Adrien’s grip on her shoulder tightened as she held her hand out to him.

Nathaniel stared at the hand, not sure how to react, before taking it in his own. Marinette pulled him into another, more gentle embrace.

It took a second, but eventually Nathaniel returned Marinette’s hug. She smiled. “It really is so good to see you.”

“You, too, Marinette.”

“Thank you for listening. I’ll try to be a better friend from now on.”

Nathaniel nodded against her shoulder.

Marinette pulled back, feeling Adrien’s tension through his touch. “I’d really love to stay and catch up, but I told Alya we were on our way over. She hasn’t got much time before she goes to work.”

Nathaniel nodded, “Of course.”

“I’ll visit you soon, and I’ll keep in touch this time. I promise.”

“Wait, are you leaving again?” Nathaniel asked, the panicked look returning to his eyes.

Marinette nodded. “I am. It’s just a part of our arrangement, but don’t worry, I’ll definitely keep you in the loop this time.”

“That’s…” Nathaniel’s smile definitely looked forced. Adrien was having a harder and harder time controlling himself. “Thanks, Marinette.”

They quickly said their goodbyes, and Nino ushered them away from that kid as quickly as possible. There was something off about him, both Adrien and Nino could feel it. They would have to check with Tikki and Plagg as soon as possible to see if they could feel it, too.

* * *

As soon as Marinette and those... _leeches_ surrounding her left, Nathaniel clutched the phone in his hand and dialed the number again.

The word “ _fiancé_ ” rattled around in his head. She was deeper than he expected.

He heard the line pick up, but knew better than to expect a greeting. With shaky breath, he spoke.

“I need to talk to The Leader.”

* * *

Adrien stood out on the apartment’s balcony, discussing something with the Kwamis. Alya set out snacks on her coffee table for everyone, hoping it was enough.

“So, why do you have to travel with the entire demon army accompanying you?” She asked. She tapped Marinette’s calf with her toe.

Marinette groaned. “There was a small incident when I first crossed over, and now if either The Black Cat out there or I leave the castle we have to have constant supervision.”

Nino snorted and popped a cracker in his mouth. “Small incident. If you call fighting a Minotaur small, I guess.”

“You did what?!” Alya shoved Marinette in the shoulder.

“He did more than I did!” Marinette whined, trying to shift the blame by pointing to Adrien through the window.

Alya groaned and flopped back on the sofa next to the demon knight. “You’re crazy, girl, you know that?”

Marinette shrugged.

Adrien reentered the living room with tight eyes. As soon as those eyes landed on Marinette, though, he seemed to loosen up immediately.

Alya couldn’t figure those two out. One minute, Marinette was whole heartedly against any kind of arranged marriage, and the next it was like she and her fiancé were best friends. And this guy looked at Marinette like she hung the stars in the sky.

According to Marinette, there were absolutely no romantic feelings between the two of them. She wasn’t giving any of the telltale signs of Infatuated Marinette. No stammering, no extra clumsiness, no mixing words, not even the intense blushing. So, either Marinette was lying and she didn’t want to admit that she and her boy were actually together for some reason, or the poor Demon Prince’s feelings were one sided.

The two fairy like creatures that Marinette had called Kwami settled onto the coffee table and considered the tray. Tikki, who had previous experience in the human world, quickly selected a cranberry and white chocolate cookie, while Plagg studied the cheese plate in front of him.

“Have you seen Nathaniel lately?” Marinette asked, turning her cookie over in her fingers.

“I haven’t,” Alya admitted, watching the small black Kwami pick up a piece of camembert and take a long inhale. “I’ve tried to get ahold of him, but the last couple of weeks, he’s kind of shut himself off. We got into kind of a big fight after you left. He flipped out a little bit after I told him what happened.”

Marinette groaned. “I’m so sorry, Al, it is all my fault.”

“What’s your fault?”

“We ran into this Nathaniel outside of the bakery earlier,” Nino explained. “He was looking extra rough.”

Alya pushed her glasses up and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’ll have to go drag him out of his rut. Maybe now that he’s seen for himself that you’re absolutely fine he can stop obsessing.”

“I feel awful. He was so worried. I’ve been a horrible friend.”

“You can do better from now on. Just don’t let your anxiety get in the way of that again.”

Plagg finally shoved the cube of camembert into his mouth. Adrien watched in horror as his cousin crammed that enormous chunk of smelly cheese into his face.

“Wow,” Plagg said, mouth still full, “Where has this been all my life? Centuries of living, and I haven’t lived until this day.” He grabbed another piece of cheese. “What did you call this stuff again?”

“Um,” Marinette said, trying to figure out how he fit all of that cheese into his tiny body, “It’s camembert.”

“Camembert,” Plagg repeated. “I love camembert.”

Adrien grabbed the Kwami’s tail and pulled him off of the table. “Plagg!”

“Whaaaat?” Plagg whined.

“There’s another wheel in the kitchen,” Alya laughed, and Marinette was thankful for her easygoing best friend.

Alya stood to retrieve the cheese, and Nino volunteered to go with her. Adrien shook his head and released Plagg’s tail.

Marinette watched all of these people interact and a surreal calmness settled over her. Alya, who had been her best friend since _college,_ and these demons who had taken her under their wings and taken care of her together in one place. Her past and her present.

Marinette was beginning to think of Adrien and his family as her own, now more than ever. Some time ago, Adrien had stopped being a convenient friend in an inescapable situation and started being...something more.

She wasn’t sure how to define their relationship yet. She wasn’t sure she wanted to. She was too afraid of what it would mean for her, for him, for their contract.

It was a lot to take in, honestly.

But looking at him now, knowing how far he’d gone to give her a chance to see her parents and friends again, even knowing it was a risk, she couldn’t help but feel like things were going to work out alright.

* * *

Nathaniel felt his chest constricting even as he stepped through the door to the underground bar.

A large man, Antoine he believed he was called, stood to the side to allow Nathaniel to pass into the darkened room. The leader sat at the bar counter, covered in a dark cloak in an almost cartoonish manner. He hadn’t wanted to do this, but everything Claude had told him, all the stories of demonic glamour seemed to be real. It must have been what those demons used on Marinette’s parents and Alya, too.

Marinette was back, but that wasn’t his Marinette. That wasn’t the friend he’d shared coffee with, and drawn with, and gone to school with for so many years.

That blond demon, her “ _fiancé”_ , had done something to his friend. That demon scum had taken his best friend and….and...brainwashed her somehow!

If the Order was formed to save humans from the darkness of demons, they could save Marinette, right?

“What brings you here, Nathaniel?” Claude asked, not bothering to pull down his hood.

Nathaniel sat on the stool next to Claude and cradled his head in his hands. “She’s back.”

Claude lifted his head, but did not turn.

“I saw her. I-I talked to her. Marinette is back, but she’s different somehow.” Nathaniel continued. “I-I don’t know. And she was surrounded by these men—these demons. They wouldn’t leave her side. I think they did something to her. That glamour that you were talking about. She’s been missing for so long, and suddenly she comes back and she’s all smiling and happy? I don’t get it! She didn’t even call me, and I’m supposed to accept that she’s been fine this whole time?”

“Did she say how long she would be in town?” Claude asked calmly.

Nathaniel shook his head, but realized Claude probably couldn’t see him. “She didn’t say, but probably not for long. Can you help her?”

“Of course, my boy. We will do everything in our power to save your friend, no matter what.”

Nathaniel rubbed his forehead, and felt a warm hand rub his shoulder.

“I’ve been where you are now, Nathaniel. I, too, lost someone I loved to those monsters. But I promise, I can help you. You did the right thing coming to us,” Claude continued. “Let us know if you learn anything else.”

“Yes, sir.” Nathaniel replied, a fire growing in the pit of his stomach.

Whatever that demon trash had done to Marinette, Nathaniel was going to make sure they paid. He was going to make sure his friend made it home safe, where she belongs.

* * *

Alya walked the group of them down to the lobby of her apartment at the end of the afternoon so that she could get ready for work.

Marinette pretended not to notice the way Nino held onto Alya’s hand just a moment too long when saying goodbye, or the way Alya looked up at him between her eyelashes. Marinette would definitely be texting for a status update later that evening.

Marinette gave Alya one last hug before they all headed back to the bakery.

It was almost dinner time, and the bakery should be cleared out by now.

Marinette looked towards the sky, painted violet and orange in the light of the setting sun. She may have been walking closer to Adrien than strictly necessary, but she tried not to think too hard on that.

When they arrived at the bakery, Marinette led them all through the side door which would take them directly up to her parents’ kitchen above. Nino was the last one left outside.

Marinette hesitated at the door. Nino seemed...distracted by something.

“Nino?” She called. “Are you coming?”

Nino nodded. “Yeah, of course.”

He shot her a winning smile and followed her through the door. He double checked the lock before following her up the stairs.                               

Seeing Adrien sitting in Marinette’s living room was even more surreal than seeing him sitting in Alya’s. Marinette tried not to dwell on the fact that he, in his human form, literally looked like a supermodel standing in her mother’s very pink kitchen, already wearing one of her father’s oversized aprons.

She pulled out a barstool and sat on the other side of the counter and watched as her mother taught him how to stuff dumplings. Plagg complained about the distinct lack of camembert and her father laughed good naturedly as he pulled out a cheese tray. Marinette couldn’t help but feel that they had created a monster.

Marinette and Adrien cooked dinner alongside of her parents, with Tikki watching attentively over Marinette’s shoulder, Nino cracked jokes, and Plagg gorged himself on cheese. It felt almost...natural.

After they enjoyed dinner together, Marinette and Adrien climbed the stairs to Marinette’s childhood bedroom to get a few more of her clothes and personal possessions before the night had to end and they had to return to the Second Realm.

Adrien was fascinated by her back issue collection of Vogue, and the sheer number of cat plushes she had scattered about her room. Marinette had never thought it was that many until she had to face Adrien’s relentless teasing about it.

When they all sat together on her parents’ sofa, her tucked safely between her mom and dad, like she was a child again, and her friends happily surrounding her, Marinette couldn’t help the fleeting wish to have this moment last forever.

She really was the happiest she had been in a long time, since even farther back than finding out that demons and magic were real.

Unfortunately, even the happiest moments had to end.

Nino had been on edge since they’d gotten back to Marinette’s house. She couldn’t figure out what it was that had set him on high alert. Finally, he seemed to reach his breaking point.

In what Marinette assumed was supposed to be a casual manner, Nino urged that it was getting late, and they needed to return to the palace before the King sent the troops to collect them. The Kwami seemed to have picked up on Nino’s mood as well. They became anxious.

Adrien knew better than to protest. “Why don’t we open the portal in your bedroom instead of leaving through the park, Marinette?” He suggested.

Marinette agreed. She was sad to leave her parents behind, but she’d been up for nearly twenty four hours and was feeling exhausted. Part of her wished she could stay at least one night in her own bed in her own room, but something about the nervous energy forming in the room kept her from pushing her luck.

Reluctantly, she said goodbye to her parents with a hug and a kiss, and a promise to call as soon as she could.

Seeing that her mother was alright really did wonders for Marinette’s outlook on...pretty much everything.

She looked back on the events of the last month and was, for the first time, thankful that Wayzz had stopped to ask her about her flowers. Without him and Master Fu, she wouldn’t have been able to share a day like this with her favorite people in the universe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _And I don't want the world to see me  
>  'Cause I don't think that they'd understand  
> When everything's made to be broken  
> I just want you to know who I am  
> _


	11. Would You Like Some Tea?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would You Like Some Tea by HelloVenus  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQm_9nbY_7U

As he passed through the portal, Adrien could feel an icy chill on the air. 

Looks like his father had noticed their absence, after all. 

Even Nino’s tension was palpable. Adrien could only hope that Marinette didn’t pick up on what was happening.

Adrien stepped out of the portal first, onto the soft grass of the garden, illuminated by the first light of dawn. He plastered a smile onto his face before turning back, holding a hand out to Marinette. She took his palm in her own and didn’t release it until both feet were firmly on the ground. Nino and the Kwami took up the rear, faces drawn in concern, and Adrien sealed the portal as soon as they were through. 

“Adrien,” called the cold voice of his father’s assistant. 

He winced and turned to see Nathalie descending the steps stiffly into the garden. “Your father would like to see you immediately.” She turned her attention to the knights. “The three of you, see to it that Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng makes it to her suites. Once you have done so, the King would like to see you as well.”

Marinette glanced over her shoulder to Adrien as Tikki--already changed back to her demon form--took her arm.  Adrien smiled, trying to reassure her. He had loved seeing her so happy all day. Her bright smile had scarcely left her face since they’d arrived in her realm, and the music of her laughter would be stuck in his head for ages. He didn’t want her good mood to disappear because of him. 

She reluctantly followed her chaperones into the castle, leaving Adrien to follow Nathalie through the increasingly icy corridors to his father’s study.

Nathalie opened the door for Adrien and stepped aside for him to enter, but did not follow, closing the door behind him and waiting outside.

Gabriel was seated behind his large desk, as he always was, with stacks of books and documents from parliament before him. Adrien waited silently behind the chairs in front of his father’s desk until he was acknowledged.

“Of all of the reckless, irresponsible, stupid things you have ever done,” Gabriel finally said, his voice low, and terrifyingly even, “this is by far the worst.” He leveled a piercing glare at his son. It was only thanks to years of practice that Adrien didn’t cower under the gaze, or flinch at the burst of cold air emanating from where his father stood. “To take the  _ Kore-- _ the  _ untrained Kore _ \--intended savior of our realm into the human world in the dead of night, without my permission-- Do you have any idea what could have happened? You have endangered not only  _ Mademoiselle  _ Dupain-Cheng, but you have threatened the entire existance of our realm and hers. What do you have to say for yourself?”

Adrien kept his tone in check. He’d known what he was getting into when he hatched the plan in the first place, so his father’s fury came as no surprise now. “Marinette needed to go home, even if only for a day. She was suffocating here. If we don’t give her some freedom, she’s never going to agree to stay here, so I took her to see her parents. I brought Plagg, Tikki, and Nino with me to ensure we would be protected, and nothing happened. We were perfectly safe.”

Gabriel slammed his hand down on the desk. “You have no idea what you’re doing, or what kind of danger you have put everyone in.”

“What danger, Father? We all made it back completely unharmed. We need to get our realm out of the dark ages. I don’t understand why we can’t rebuild our relationship with the human side.”

“Our relationship with the human realm ended the day your mother died!”

Adrien did flinch this time. His father rarely raised his voice. He never really needed to, preferring to intimidate with his mere presence in a room. Adrien had asked and pleaded with his father to talk about his mother for years, but he was always brushed off. Why was he bringing her up now?

“What happened to my mother?” Adrien asked softly.

“Gabriel clenched and unclenched his fist before he straightened his posture once again. He closed his eyes for a moment, brows knitted together in concentration. There were fine lines of stress, emphasized by the tension in his jaw. “I didn’t want to tell you, but since you insist on being reckless, I don’t seem to have any other choice. She was murdered.”

Adrien sucked in a breath and physically recoiled from his father’s words. He staggered, losing his perfect posture in front of his father for the first time in years. He’d still been young when his mother passed away, too young to fully understand what was happening, and he only remembered a few details from her funeral. He’d  never been told the circumstances of her death, and eventually had to accept that he may never really know, but he’d never expected this. “By humans?”

Gabriel opened his eyes and glared, not at his son, but into the metaphorical void. “By her brother. Her human brother. Your mother and I had an engagement like yours, but we were allowed to meet before she signed the contract. Like  _ Mademoiselle  _ Dupain-Cheng, she was never forced, but she did leave her family behind. Humans have never understood us. They believe we are too close to the darkness, think that we are the ones who spread their plagues. That man found out your mother married a demon king and believed we had somehow tricked her, or tainted her somehow. He cut off all contact with her for years.

“One day, when you were only a few years old, she decided it was time to visit her parents.Time passes differently in the human realm, and your mother looked not a day older than she had when she first came here, but her parents had aged many decades since then.  They were getting old, and she wasn’t sure how much longer they had. I warned her to take a guard with her, but she insisted on going alone. She said it was safer that way. It would draw less attention.

“But she never came home after that. Her human brother took one look at her and decided that she must have sold her soul to the devil. According to Fu, he believed that the only way to cleanse her was by sacrificing her in the name of God.”

Adrien staggered and clutched the back of one of the chairs in front of him for support. He struggled to process what his father was telling him. His mother had been murdered by her own family? How was that even possible? “But I still don’t understand. What does this have to do with Marinette? Why did we have to cut off the entire realm over this?”

“Her brother had a following. They call themselves The Order of the Butterfly, and they are still out there.They are fed by the dark forces of this universe, and seek to eliminate our entire realm.  They are waiting for the first sign that we have re-entered the human realm. They’re looking for any opportunity they can to get a chance at us.

“There are still some demons who have found ways to cross the portal. We’re working on learning how, but we believe that our seals are somehow flawed, and some of the people in town have found a way to summon the portal through them. When these people reach the human realm, the Order is always quick to get to them. They almost never make it home after that. We only know this much because we have a skilled informant on our side. That Minotaur that attacked  _ Mademoiselle  _ Dupain-Cheng in town confessed that he did so because he mistook her for an Order member. They were responsible for killing his sister.

“We may live long lives, and heal quickly, but we are far from invincible. By bringing the  _ Kore  _ back to the human realm, you risked her safety, your safety, and the safety of our people.”

Adrien hung his head, finally understanding the weight of the situation. “I am sorry, Father. I had no idea. I won’t let it happen again. I take full responsibility for everything.”

Gabriel nodded. “See that it doesn’t.” He pulled out his chair and sat down once again. “And how many times do I have to tell you? A prince never lowers his head.”

Automatically, Adrien stood up straight again.

His father’s attention had already returned to the paperwork on his desk. “I should have Nino and those Kwami banished for allowing this to happen, but considering the fact that you are willing to take responsibility, I will give them a lighter punishment for now. We will discuss your’s later.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Now, in just a couple of weeks we will be holding a ball for the anniversary of my coronation and marriage to your mother. With how well you and  _ Mademoiselle  _ Dupain-Cheng get along with one another, I was intending on announcing your engagement that night as well, but in light of this situation, I am wondering if I should reconsider…”

“No!” Adrien interjected, then cleared his throat. “No, sir. I’m sure everything will go smoothly. Please don’t put things off because of my actions.”

“Very well then. I will run things by your  _ fiancée  _ before finalizing the plans.” Gabriel’s attention returned to the paperwork sitting in front of him. “You are dismissed.”

Adrien nodded and turned to leave the room. He’d been worried about Marinette before, but moreso about her mental health and security. Now, after centuries of wondering what had happened to his mother, he had a new pile of worries to add to that. How could he possibly hope to keep Marinette safe and happy when he knew the weight of the threat that faced them?

There was only one answer: he couldn’t.

* * *

Something was off with Adrien.

Marinette had been getting that feeling from him since they’d gone to visit her family. 

When they’d gotten back that morning, she got the feeling that he’d gotten in trouble with his father. Marinette felt horribly worried that maybe he’d stuck his neck out and gotten into trouble all for her. It wasn’t fair that he had to take the blame for that. He was only trying to help her out. 

When she spoke with the King on the rare occasion that he called upon her, he informed her of his intent to announce her formal engagement at an upcoming ball--her formal debut in the King’s court, and acknowledgment of her position as  _ Kore _ . He assured her that, per her contract, she was still entitled to back out at the end should she choose to, but lately that option was seeming less and less like a sure outcome. 

She was hesitant to admit it, but at some point Adrien had come to mean something more to her than just a friend. There was something there for them, a natural chemistry that brought them together. 

There was something appealing about being formally introduced to the people of this new world as Adrien’s fiancée, someone tied to him in a way no one else was. Marinette was nervous about examining that feeling too closely, afraid of what it might mean for her feelings.

With that announcement in mind, King Gabriel also decided that it was time for her to begin studying the history and government of their realm. If she was going to consider becoming a member of the ruling family, she needed to know everything she could about their society. Thus, Marinette began tutoring under the King’s assistant, Nathalie.

Marinette was pleased to find that demon realm history and politics were far more interesting than studying French society like she’d been forced to in school. Their world was so much smaller than hers was, with only one continent spanning their entire globe, making a singular monarchy sufficient to oversee the entire realm rather than the hundreds of world leaders they had on Earth. 

In addition to learning about Demon history and society, she was also tutored in Demon culture and arts. She was taught about balls and the types of entertainment that would be expected of her, but she was also given practical lessons in the cultural arts. She learned that the three most commonly spoken languages in this realm were French, Chinese, and Japanese. The lines between the worlds were thinnest in France and Eastern Asia on the human side, which, long ago, had lead to massive cultural exchange between the realms. The Second Realm picked up languages, and other cultural traditions from those locations in the Human World. Those places had distinct superstitions and legends about encounters with demons as a result.  Tanuki, Minotaurs, even the Greek Gods and Goddesses seemed to have their origins in demon realm history.

It was fascinating. 

But as Marinette’s schedule filled with lessons, she became busier, and her free time aligned less and less with the gaps in Adrien’s schedule. They always had dinner together, but they’d gotten so used to spending everyday together that this sudden shift was a long and lonely adjustment. 

Marinette tried to convince herself that their messed up schedules were the real reason for Adrien’s strange behavior, but she couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that she’d done something wrong. 

She was in the middle of lamenting her situation, instead of reading her text on demonic political parties like she was supposed to, when a light knock came to the library door. 

“Come in,” she called, hoping that maybe Adrien had finished his piano practice early. 

“So,” an unfamiliar voice called from the doorway, “you’re the famous Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” 

In the doorway stood a tall, statuesque blonde haired woman with icy blue eyes. She approached Marinette’s desk with the same haughty confidence Marinette usually saw in Parisian socialites. This was a woman with power, who was not afraid to use it. 

Marinette rose from her seat. “Um, c-can I help you?” She subconsciously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. 

“You're the  _ Kore _ , huh?” The blonde woman stalked right up to Marinette and studied her closely. She hummed ambiguously. “You’re so much plainer than I had imagined.”

Marinette’s cheek twitched, but she otherwise didn't acknowledge the insult. She clasped her hands behind her back and forced herself to smile. “Is there something I can help you with?” She repeated.

The woman stepped back, folding her arms over her chest with a smirk. “I just came to check you out, Miss  _ Kore _ . I had to see for myself who this human marrying my  _ Adrichou  _ is.”

Marinette braced herself. She’d seen this in movies enough to expect what happened next. A scorned woman who had been gunning for the prince, coming to check out her competition. “Is this where you tell me to back off of your man, or you’re going to make my life a living hell?”

The woman stared at her for a second before bursting into a fit of laughter, the kind that had a person doubling over and gasping for air. Marinette watched, eyebrows knitted, as this seemingly proper woman tried to regain her composure. 

“Oh my goodness,” she gasped, “I can’t believe-- you thought-- me and-- Oh no! No, no, no. Maybe I thought of him like that when we were kids, but--” As the laughter died down, the woman righted herself and smoothed a hand over her pristine blonde hair. “No. No way. Adrien is my cousin.”

“Your cousin?” Marinette echoed. 

“You’re funny, Marinette,” she continued. “And you hold your ground well. I like that.” She held out a perfectly manicured hand, “I am Duchess Chloe Bourgeoise, of the Bourgeoise Estate.”

Marinette shook the Duchess’s hand. She wasn’t sure exactly what it was she’d done to win Chloe’s favor, but she was thankful for whatever it was. A hostile cousin was the last thing Marinette needed on her plate. 

“Anyway,” Chloe said, strutting over to the plush chair next to Marinette’s desk. She sank into the chair and leaned back, tucking one hand under her chin and resting her elbow on the arm rest, and crossing her legs at the ankles. “The real reason I’m here is because the King has asked me to do him a favor. I’m sure he’s already told you about the announcement he’ll be making at the ball?”

Marinette nodded, returning to her own chair when it became clear that Chloe wasn’t going anywhere any time soon.

“It was kind of a last minute decision, so they don’t have time to commission a gown for you. The King has asked me to help you find a dress instead. I don’t know how he expects me to do that when you’re basically not even allowed to leave the palace. Not that going out would do any good. This realm has been isolated for so long that our fashion sense is totally stuck in the dark ages.”

“Adrien said something about that before,” Marinette mentioned. 

She hated to admit it, but they were right. Most of the clothes in this realm still resembled clothing from the 1800s, albeit with slightly less ostentatious prints than royalty in that time was known for. Marinette stuck out like a sore thumb with her jeans and sun dresses, but she couldn’t bring herself to put on clothes that felt so much like a costume every day. 

Though she had to admit that Adrien looked good in a morning coat. Especially with the way the shape accented his broad shoulders, and his cravat always matched his eyes...

Marinette shook her head. She really shouldn’t be thinking about her friend that way. It was dangerous territory. 

Chloe, fortunately, hadn’t seemed to notice the way Marinette’s thoughts had drifted, and continued complaining about the lack of new styles in the realm. “And, honestly, can’t I get just one pair of jeans in this entire Kingdom?” She scoffed. 

When Marinette didn’t respond, Chloe turned her icy blue eyes on her. 

Marinette stiffened under the gaze, feeling like she was being picked apart. 

“What’s your deal, anyway?”

“What?” Marinette asked. 

Chloe’s eyes narrowed. “You’re just...I don’t know. Strange?”

It was getting hard not to be offended by everything this woman said, but Marinette reminded herself to be diplomatic. “Strange?”

“Look, I know we’ve just met,” Chloe said, “but I feel like I need to ask this, as Adrien’s cousin and his best friend: what do you want from him? I mean, you reject the title ‘Your Highness’, and you don’t even want to get married, so like, why are you here? Most women throw themselves at my cousin, even knowing that he is obligated to marry a human. They’re after his status, looks, money, power. But you don’t fit into any of those categories. I can’t figure out what it is you’re after. Adrien has been through enough in his life, so I want to be sure that he’s not being taken advantage of.”

Marinette shifted her weight in her chair. She wasn’t sure why she had to explain herself to Chloe, but she had a feeling that if she didn’t give a satisfactory answer, this woman would make her life very difficult. “I came to protect my  _ maman _ . She got sick, and Master Fu said that he could help me if I agreed to a trial engagement.”

“So you did it for the power? Did you ever have any intention of marrying Adrien?” The cold acidity returned to her voice.

As much as Marinette hated to admit it, she knew the best way to deal with this situation was to be completely honest. “At first, no I didn’t. Adrien and I got off to a pretty bad start, and I said some hurtful things to him, but after we cleared the misunderstandings, we were able to become friends. I haven’t known Adrien very long, but I know I care about him. A lot. I want him to be happy.”

“But you still don’t want to marry him?”

Marinette thought about the question. In the beginning, the answer to that question would have been “hell no,” but that was before she started getting to know the real Adrien, the sensitive, funny, genuine man behind the cold mask of the demon prince that his father expected him to wear. It was still early, but Marinette could tell that something in her had started to change. “I...don’t know. I think I want to take this engagement seriously. It’s still a trial engagement after all. I’ve gotten to know Adrien pretty well over the past few weeks, and I enjoy being with him. I’m not sure if I can definitely say that I want to marry Adrien, but I can’t say that I don’t, either.”

“Adrien has been through a lot,” Chloe said, her tone sober. “I’m sure you’ve been here long enough to see the way his father treats him. He needs someone in his life who accepts him for who he is, all of him, and who wants to stand by him. He needs someone to love, and who can love him in return. If there is any part of you who genuinely thinks that could maybe be you, then I’ll accept you. But if you already know that you aren’t willing to be there for him, heart and soul, you should just leave.”

“I...um,” Marinette gulped. She hadn’t been expecting to admit something like this out loud today, but she could see that, by coming to see what Marinette’s intentions were, Chloe was caring about Adrien in her own way. “I might...want to be that person for him...in the future, I think.”

Marinette was sure she was as red as a tomato. She couldn’t bring herself to meet Chloe’s eyes after such an intense confession.

“If that’s the case, you need to seriously consider what you want out of this contract, beyond helping your mom.” Chloe said.

“I agree,” Marinette said honestly. 

“Talk to Adrien,” Chloe suggested, studying her nail beds. “You need to be on the same page.”

Marinette nodded. She was right. If there was even an inkling of an idea that she might stay, she should find out what Adrien was thinking as well.

“But enough of that,” Chloe waved her hand dismissively, “let’s talk dress colors. I have a whole rainbow of colors in my closet to choose from. Surely one of them will be suitable for this occasion. It’s just too bad there are no good designers in this stupid isolated realm.”

“Um, if it’s a matter of modernizing the dresses, maybe I could actually help with that.” Marinette suggested. “I make my own clothes after all.”

Chloe grasped both of Marinette’s hands in her own and suddenly looked at her with stars in her eyes. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng, if you can bring fashion into this realm, maybe we have a chance of being friends after all.”

* * *

Marinette was still mulling over what Chloe said earlier. She really did need to talk to Adrien. Her feelings were changing. She’d never expected it, but if she was going to even consider a different outcome, a new plan for her future, Adrien deserved to know.

As usual, the two of them spent their dinner mostly alone. 

Unlike usual, the silence was...tense. Like both of them had something to say, but were too afraid to say it. It was out of character for her to be afraid like this, so after taking a sip of her tea for courage, she finally decided to suck it up. 

“Um,” Marinette cleared her throat. “A-Adrien, can I something with you about talk? I mean, You with me and speak together? I mean--” She groaned and rubbed her forehead, took a breath, and tried again, “Can I talk to you about something?”

She tried to ignore the mirth in Adrien’s eyes. 

“What is it?” He asked. 

Marinette stirred the tea in her teacup and removed the small bag of floral tea so that it wouldn’t grow bitter from over steeping. How should she bring this up? On one hand, she could be direct. After all, they did have a literal engagement contract. The end goal was supposed to be marriage with those. But on the other hand, she still didn’t know what she was feeling. If she were a thirteen year old again with her first crush, maybe she would have thought of things differently. Back then, at the first sign of romance, she had imagined her entire future around one person, planning the names of their children before she could even form a sentence around them. 

She was still having trouble with her words, but she was more mature now. She knew better than to rush into anything. This marriage, if she decided to go through with it, would last several lifetimes. According to Nathalie and the books she was reading every day, the  _ Kore _ , once they accept their position, is able to live as long as a naturally born demon. By tying herself to the demon world, she would be signing up for a thousand year long marriage. 

_ And I only have a few months to decide, _ she thought. 

Realizing that Adrien was waiting patiently for her to ask him something, she snapped herself out of her thoughts and refocused on the task at hand. “Can I ask what you wanted to get out of...this?”

“This, as in the contract?” He asked, surprised that she brought it up so suddenly. He didn’t have to think about his answer, but he knew that answering so promptly and bluntly might scare her, so he took a beat to look like he was considering his answer. “At first I didn’t want this at all. I’d known this was coming my whole life, but our world has gone for so long without a queen that a part of me thought maybe I wouldn’t have to get engaged to someone I don’t know. When my father told me that Master Fu was already looking for the person who would become my intended, I panicked and threw a little bit of a tantrum.”

“I can’t picture you throwing a tantrum,” Marinette giggled. 

“Okay, maybe it was less a tantrum and more a mope session, but you get the point.” Adrien folded his napkin and placed it next to his flatware. “After that, I remembered my mother. There was a time, a long time ago, when she and my father were happy. Before she--Before she was--” His throat caught, and he shook his head to clear his thoughts. “I guess I was hoping to have a happiness like that. At least if my fiancée and I couldn’t marry for love like people do in books, we could at least have friendship. If we could make each other happy, that’s all that matters. That’s what I thought anyway.”

Marinette nodded. Spending lifetimes with your best friend, maybe that wouldn’t be so bad. But if that meant that’s all they could be, she wasn’t sure that’s what she wanted to happen. 

She's always wanted a marriage like her parents had. 

Marinette held her teacup with both hands, took a sip and finished the cup, and let the warmth give her strength. 

“What about now?” She asked, a little afraid of what he might say. 

Marinette couldn't tell if she was imagining the way his cheeks darkened, but she didn't miss the way he coughed and rubbed the back of his neck. He was flustered. Marinette had to suppress a giggle. Sometimes he was so smooth, making puns and complimenting her in the most ridiculous way imaginable, but then there were times like this. Times that made her wonder if maybe he did feel something more than friendship, that the friendly flirting they engaged in every day meant something more.

“Now,” he began, not meeting her eyes. He rubbed his hand over his mouth before continuing, “now the girl isn’t a figment of my imagination. She’s real, and she had a life before me. And I want her to be happy, no matter what choice she makes.”

Butterflies fluttered about in Marinette’s stomach. “But what do  _ you _ want?”

Finally, Adrien’s electric green eyes, framed in long, golden lashes, met her’s. “I want a marriage like my parents had.”

Marinette’s heart skipped a beat. She tucked her head, hiding her sheepish smile. She didn’t know what King Gabriel was like when his wife was alive, but the way Adrien looked when he recalled those days told Marinette that he had been a completely different person back then. She wondered if their family looked anything like her’s did. 

Marinette felt her own face warming and placed her empty porcelain teacup on the saucer as she whispered her own confession. “I want that, too.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Every day, every night when will we get a bit closer?  
>  I can’t even say it because I’m the girl  
> Stupid boy, silly boy, I can’t wait any longer  
> Today I will be courageous and tell you..._


	12. If It Means a Lot to You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If It Means a Lot to You by A Day to Remember

Marinette was glad to have a project again. As much fun as it was to make clothes for herself, she could only work on so many before she worked herself into a rut. 

Chloe came over often now. She used the pretense of checking on the dresses for the ball, but Marinette could tell she was just looking for someone to pass the time with. It seemed that a lot of people on this side of the portal were trying to pass the time. It was like they were all stuck waiting for something that would never come.

Marinette cinched the seafoam dress at the ribcage of the mannequin. There had been a lot of fabric to work with in the regency style gowns. The shape was lovely, even if a couple of centuries out of style. Marinette decided to keep the basic silhouette. She gave the new dress a princess waist, accented by a gold trim that complimented the green. She had decided to keep the original lace and embroidered trim along the train of the dress, but shortened the skirt so that it would no longer drag on the floor. Cap sleeves with matching golden embroidery and a layer of seafoam chiffon to give the skirt some fluidity and it was nearly done. She just needed to fit it to Chloe one last time.

Marinette’s dress hung finished in the wardrobe. As suggested by Nooroo, she would wear the  _ Kore _ ’s color. 

The ball was scheduled to be held in just two days. According to Nathalie, who had been painstakingly training her for this for several weeks, this would be the first ball held in the realm for decades. This celebration was going to be historic, and she would be at the center of it. 

She was nervous. As she stitched the final clasp into the side of the dress, her hands shook. It was nerve wracking, realizing how much her life could change in just a moment. In just two days, she would be presented as the future queen of this realm. 

She couldn’t believe this was happening. She shook her head and slapped her cheeks, trying to snap back to herself. 

A knock came on the door to her bedroom, followed by a reminder about her lessons with Master Fu that afternoon. 

Now that Marinette had changed her frame of thinking, she was taking her time here much more seriously, and that included her lessons. She needed to understand what she was signing up for, and to do that, she needed to understand this family, their history, and their world. She’d even asked Nathalie and Nooroo to give her more to read on her own time. 

While Adrien was in fencing, she studied flower arrangement. While he learned Chinese, she studied law. When he practiced piano, she read history texts. While he sat in on meetings with his father, she practiced her abilities with Master Fu. She was nearly as busy as he was, and though she was exhausted, she couldn’t help but feel that this would be worth it.

Should she choose to commit to a life here, it might be incredibly fulfilling. She’d always had a passion for helping people. What better way to do that than to work directly with their government? 

The people of the Second Realm needed help. The darkness was taking over, and plagues and poverty were spreading. If she had the power to help them, she certainly would. 

* * *

That afternoon, she found herself in the gardens with Master Fu. Wayzz went off with the other Kwami, leaving them on their own.

“Today, I thought we could take it a bit easy,” Master Fu said, leading Marinette to a table on the lawn. “You enjoy gardening, yes?”

Marinette’s face lit up at the sight of seeds, pots, and soil. “I do.”

“Then that is what we will do.”

The two of them sat opposite one another, putting soil into pots quietly. Master Fu explained that, although winter was coming, they would keep the plans in a greenhouse on the west side of the castle until the spring, when they would be transferred to the garden. 

“I don’t understand, though,” Marinette said after laying down a base level of soil in her fourth pot. “Shouldn’t I be doing some more serious training? I have a time limit, don’t I?”

Master Fu chuckled. “Of course. You are training, Marinette.”

As usual, the old demon was cryptic. 

“Remember that the  _ Kore  _ brings life to the things around them. The things you touch become infused with your light, including things as small as these seeds.”

Marinette looked at the cockscomb seeds in her hands, small as the tips of her needles. 

“Before you plant those, let’s do some practice.” Master Fu suggested. Marinette nodded and he continued. “Take the seeds in one hand, and cradle them in your palm. Then, close your eyes, and cup your other hand over top.”

Marinette did as instructed, feeling a bit silly, but trusting in the master anyway. 

“Now feel the light flowing through you. Concentrate on that feeling. Visualize the energy networks in your mind.”

Marinette tried to keep herself relaxed as she pictured something like a chakra network in her mind. Light energy was probably like chakras, right? Master Fu confirmed that she could picture the light in her mind, and she nodded. 

“Good. Now feel the power in your veins. Focus on the feeling of warmth as it courses through you.”

The strangest thing was that Marinette could actually feel it. Up until then, she and Master Fu had focused on meditation, clearing her mind, and getting in touch with her inner self. She could see that it was all practice. She fell into her typical routine, and when her mind opened up to what she was picturing, she could actually feel the light energy under her skin. It was fascinating. 

“Take that energy and concentrate it into the palm of your hand. Transfer the light from within you to the seeds. Fill them with your light. When you feel ready, you can open your eyes.”

Marinette felt the tiny seeds taking on the warmth from the palm of her hand. She felt her energy filling them. When she felt they were full of her energy, she finally opened her eyes.

The little pinpricks looked no different than they had moments before. For a split second, she wondered if Master Fu had been pulling her leg. After all, he did like to joke around sometimes. But she didn’t take him for someone to joke at a time like this. 

“You may plant the seeds now,” Master Fu said. 

Marinette nodded and put a few of the seeds in each pot of soil. She delicately covered each of them in another layer of soil, before spraying the dirt lightly with water.

“Normally, these flowers take about two or three weeks to germinate. However, under your care and practiced hand, with the power you’ve infused them with, you will find that they bloom far more quickly.” 

Marinette was about to ask Master Fu what he meant, when she noticed a slight movement in the pots. 

Right before their eyes, green buds pushed up through the soil. 

“Well done, Marinette.”

Marinette’s breath rushed out. This power, whatever it was, was far greater than she had ever imagined.

* * *

Plagg watched in amusement as Adrien paced about his suite. The grand ball was already under way, but he and Marinette would not be making their entrance until later in the evening.

It gave Marinette plenty of time to get ready for her first ball, but it gave Adrien just enough time to feel trapped. 

He was often trapped in this castle, but rarely was he confined to one room. His last ball had been about a century ago, and he’d never been a huge fan of them, but this night was different.

He would be presenting Marinette to the leaders of his realm as the  _ Kore  _ and their potential future queen. He was happy and excited, but also...somewhat worried. 

He couldn’t shake the feeling that he was taking something away from Marinette by asking her to stay. The image of her embracing her parents, and laughing with Alya stuck in his mind. He couldn’t shake the sight of her brightest smile when she’d been curled up on her own couch, laughing at a bad joke her father made and eating one of her mother’s cookies. 

But there was also their conversation from a couple weeks ago, when she asked him what it was he wanted out of their contract. It was the first time anyone had asked him. His father told him from the time he was small that this was his duty to his country. Master Fu picked his fiancee, even though they hadn’t seen one another in decades. Then Marinette came, the entire time without a single person asking what he wanted. But she did.

She asked him with wide, curious eyes and a light flush to her cheeks, almost like she was anticipating his answer, like she was looking forward to it. 

He almost had some hope that maybe she’d changed her mind about leaving.

But again, he couldn’t help but wonder if it was for the best if she left. 

She had a life, he reminded himself. She had a loving family. There was no way she would leave them for him. She couldn’t want to. 

He mulled over this for some time, until Plagg got tired of the silence.

“It’s time for you and the princess to get down there, already.” He said loudly. 

Adrien checked his pocket watch. Plagg was right. It was time.

After tonight, their announcement would be heard throughout the realm. 

Adrien tried not to dwell too much on that, for fear of nerves rising in his stomach. 

He gave his appearance one last glance as he passed his floor length mirror, ensuring that his formal dress uniform was as pristine as possible.

He left his suite and made his way down the corridor. He was nearly at the foyer when he spotted Marinette coming down the opposite hall, bathed in the low, golden light of the chandeliers. 

Her hair was drawn back into a loose chignon, pieces of hair loose to strategically frame her face. Her lips were painted bright red, matching the long, crimson and black dress she wore. 

Adrien could barely find Chloe’s old dress in this new one Marinette wore. He knew she was going to tailor them, but he had no idea how much skill she really had. It was beautiful. A floor-length crimson dress, with black lace sleeves embellished with crimson beads and jewels. The dress maintained its traditional silhouette, with a princess waist cinched by a silken belt. 

She took Adrien’s breath away, and he was reminded once again of how much she was giving up to be there.

_ She wants to make clothes _ , he reminded himself. _ She can’t do that if she’s ruling a realm. _

He shook those thoughts from his mind as the two met in the central corridor. Plagg stood behind Adrien, eyes glued to his pocketwatch to ensure their entrance would be exactly on time. 

Marinette’s eyes sparkled like stars in the night sky. Adrien shoved down the last bit of guilt and smiled at her so hard that his cheeks hurt. Just a look from her sent his heart racing. 

This girl was going to break his heart. 

“Hey,” She said softly, looking him over.

“Hi,” Adrien stood up straighter, hoping she liked what she was seeing as much as he did. “You look... amazing.”

She beamed at him. “You aren’t half bad yourself.” 

“I can’t believe you made this,” Adrien continued, lightly brushing his fingers against the off shoulder lace sleeves. “You’re so talented.”

“I started sewing when I was twelve. It’s been a lot of pricked fingers and botched fabric since then. But I am proud of this one.”

Plagg mock gagged. “Ok love birds, it’s time to get going. Stow the googly eyes for later, preferably when I’m not around.”

Both Marinette and Adrien flushed and averted their eyes, but neither of them denied Plagg’s insinuation. 

Adrien cleared his throat and offered his arm. “Shall we, My Lady?”

Marinette giggled and looped her arm through his. “Lead the way,  _ Chaton _ .”

As they approached the closed doors to the enormous ballroom, Plagg sent word to Nooroo that they were about to enter. The guards at the door grasped the handles for a double door entrance. 

Even through the heavy wood, Marinette could hear that the ball was well underway. She was suddenly hit with a wave of nausea, and she gripped Adrien’s arm tighter than strictly necessary. 

“Nervous, Bug?” He teased.

She glared at him playfully, hearing the laughter in his voice. “It’s my first time at a ball. I’m a baker’s daughter in Paris. The closest I’ve ever been to a fancy party is when I’ve helped my parents cater celebrity weddings. I’ve never actually been the guest at one of these things.”

Adrien gave her elbow a comforting pat with his free hand. “Don’t worry, Marinette. You’re going to do just fine. Besides, Nathalie has been training you for this, hasn’t she?”

Marinette looked back on the last two weeks of instruction and shuddered. Dance classes had been a nightmare. She’d tripped so many times. “Yes.”

“Then you’ll be fine. Father had her teach you because she’s the very best, as strict as she may be. Just trust in yourself. If you don’t know what to do, I’ll be right there with you.”

Marinette nodded, and felt her nausea reside slightly. She needed to believe in herself. 

Adrien nodded to the guards at the door. Taking the signal, they turned the handles and pushed open the doors. 

Light flooded forward from the bright, marble ballroom, and Marinette’s eyes took a moment to adjust. This was far from the cold, dark, lonely ballroom she’d taken her dance lessons in. At the bottom of the stairs, demons of all shapes, sizes, and shades mingled, ate, and laughed. For the first time since she arrived, the castle felt alive. 

Adrien gave Marinette’s hand one last squeeze before stepping past the threshold. 

As their shoes tapped on the marble platform, they nodded to the King who was seated in the throne on the opposite side of the ballroom, and Nooroo announced their entrance. 

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” He called, his voice louder and more commanding than Marinette had ever heard. The subtle hum of conversation died down as every demon in attendance turned their attention to the small winged demon. “It is my distinct honor to present to you His Royal Highness, Demon of Darkness and Chaos, Crown Prince of the Second Realm: The Black Cat.”

At the announcement, there was light, but enthusiastic applause. 

“Three hundred thirty three years ago, our realm celebrated the union of our King and the late Queen, may she rest in peace. And though we have mourned the late Queen, tonight is a joyous occasion, one worth celebrating. On behalf of His Majesty, I am also honored to introduce this evening’s guest of honor.” Adrien unlooped his arm from Marinette’s and urged her forward. She glanced at him for only a second before stepping to the edge of the platform with shaky legs, as rehearsed, to be presented before the guests of the ball. “Tonight, on behalf of the Royal House Agreste, I am pleased to present to you the contracted  _ Kore,  _ future Princess of the Second Realm, Her Royal Highness Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

The cheers and applause were deafening, causing Marinette to jump, and the relief that flowed through the room was palpable. Marinette had never expected this reaction, but standing before these demons, these complete strangers, cheering and applauding for a stranger that they didn’t even know, she realized just how much the realm needed a  _ Kore _ . They trusted her blindly to bring peace to their realm. Marinette knew that she couldn’t let them down. 

Once the applause died down, Adrien returned to Marinette’s side. He leaned down to her a bit to whisper in her ear. “You did perfectly.”

“It’s not over yet,” She murmured without breaking her carefully practiced smile. 

Nooroo then announced that Adrien and Marinette, already descending the steps from the platform, would be leading the ball in the first dance. 

A path cleared on the dance floor. Marinette tried not to be intimidated by the many demons surrounding her. These would be her people. She needed to stop fearing them like they were something  _ other _ . 

Instead of focusing on her own prejudices, Marinette focused on the green of Adrien’s eyes, complimented by the green of his cravat and the black of his tailcoat. He brought her to the center of the dance floor, and brought her around to face him. He placed a hand on her waist, and she placed one on his shoulder. Fortunately for her, demons did the waltz. It hadn’t been horrendously difficult for her to pick up once she got past her two left feet. 

“Prepare to be stunned by my amazing dance moves, My Lady.” Adrien playfully waggled his eyebrows at her.

Marinette rolled her eyes, and felt her shoulders relax. “I don’t know if I like your cocky  _ cat _ titude,  _ Minou _ .”

His teasing smirk blew into a giddy grin as the music started. “Did you just make a cat pun?” He lead Marinette in a gentle, playful waltz that she followed perfectly. 

“Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t. I can’t seem to re _ claw _ l at the moment.” 

Adrien laughed, never breaking stride. “You just did it again!” 

Marinette wrinkled her nose, but couldn’t keep her own grin off her face. “I don’t know what you’re re _ fur _ ring to. You must be going crazy.”

Through their teasing, laughter, and playful banter, the rest of the world seemed to fall away. Marinette’s nerves had vanished, and she just focused on being in the moment with Adrien. He returned her puns with a few of his own, and by the time their consciousness returned to the ball, three songs had passed. 

Adrien flushed when he realized the significance of monopolizing three songs with a lady, but reminded himself that she’d just been announced as his fiancee to the entirety of the royal court, and several wealthy demons of the realm. It would be considered his right to take up so much of her time. 

The dancefloor was packed with couples by the time Adrien led Marinette away. They approached the refreshments table where Plagg was complaining to the staff that there was no camembert cheese. First, the two of them approached the King’s throne to offer their respects. He was cold, as usual, but there was some kind of satisfaction in his eyes as he assessed Adrien and Marinette. 

Adrien led Marinette around the ballroom, introducing her to the lead diplomats and important  members of his father’s court. She was amazing, able to sweet talk these government officials just right to leave a good impression with them. When they brought up current political issues, Adrien hesitated, but Marinette’s answers were smooth, informed, and practiced. 

She was a natural.

When finally the evening calmed down, and they were able to breathe without being ambushed by a member of parliament or a lord or lady giving their respects, Marinette excused herself to ask a footman to get her something to drink. Adrien took up a spot against the wall where he could observe the floor. 

“I thought your wallflower days were over, Adrikins.” Chloe said, sidling up next to him. 

“Just because I’m being social doesn’t mean I hate these events any less,” he retorted. 

“It’s just more tolerable now that you have a certain someone to share it with, right?” She rolled her eyes, and twirled out in front of him. “Aren’t you going to compliment my dress? It’s gorgeous, right? And totally one of a kind. The Duchess of Inglewood is seething with jealousy, and I’m living.”

Adrien looked over Chloe for the first time that evening, remembering that Marinette had done her dress as well. It really was gorgeous, and far more fashionable than anything anyone else was wearing. “It’s fantastic. Marinette did a wonderful job.”

“If it weren’t for the fact that this is her debut, I’m sure all eyes would have been on me, tonight.” Chloe lifted the skirt of her dress and let it flutter about her legs, gold trim shimmering under the ballroom lights. “It’s really a shame, though. Marinette said she’s wanted to be a fashion designer since she was, like, a kid. I don’t know what they’re wearing in the other realm right now, but if she can do things like this, who knows what she could have done over there.” Chloe shrugged and grabbed a glass of wine from the tray of a passing footman. “Oh well.”

Chloe went on talking, complaining about something or another, but Adrien had stopped listening. The reminder of what Marinette could have done had totally sobered him. He watched her from across the hall as she spoke with one of the Dukes, probably about his district’s rising poverty levels, and he was reminded of the fact that she’d never asked for this. 

Suddenly, the guilt and shame he’d been carrying since their visit with her parents came crashing back down on him. No matter how he looked at things, there was nothing justifying him asking her to stay with him for the next seven, eight, nine hundred years in this prison of a castle when she had dreams of her own, and a family that loved her in the other realm. 

His existence for the past three hundred years had been cold and lonely, and he’d been drawn in by her warmth, so much so that he’d forgotten for a moment that she didn’t belong in his world. She never intended to stay. She wanted to save her mother, that was all. She’d said so herself. 

Besides all of that, was she even safe here? According to his father, once he married Marinette, she would become a target. The Order would want her dead. Things weren’t safe for her in this world, and if he did marry her, she couldn’t return to her own safely either. She would be trapped in this cold, lonely castle with him for centuries, and he would have to watch that warmth he’d come to love in her fade to ice. 

He would lose her, too, just like he’d lost his mother. Maybe not because of The Order, but because of his own selfish need to be near her. 

He couldn’t do that to her. 

Chloe was in the middle of a story when Adrien pushed off the wall and trudged off towards the balcony doors.. He needed some fresh air. He needed to get away from people for a while. 

* * *

Marinette sighed in relief as the Duke excused himself to find his wife. This was exhausting. She could see why Adrien hated coming to these.

Speaking of, she should really try to find him. She scanned the ballroom, but couldn’t find his blonde head or black tail anywhere. 

“If you’re looking for Adrien,” Chloe said, walking bruskly to Marinette from the other side of the table, “He’s run off. Literally. In the middle of my very important story about how Sabrina, the Viscount’s daughter, imbibed herself while we were on holiday a few weeks ago. It was absolutely scandalous.” 

Marinette shook her head. Chloe was...interesting to say the least. She was certainly glad that she seemed to like Marinette, because she had a feeling Chloe was not a person you wanted to hate you. Besides, Adrien said that before Nino came along, Chloe had been his only and closest friend growing up. If they were that close, there had to be good in the blonde girl, even with all of her sass.

“This is exhausting,” Marinette lamented. “How did you do this all the time?”

Chloe thought for a moment, “Well, it’s been a few decades since these kinds of balls were actually consistent, but my answer was typically wine, and a lot of it.” She took a sip from her glass. “Look at that, it still works.”

“Wine,” Marinette repeated. “Got it. Good plan.” She spotted a passing footman and hailed him down.

Chloe expected Marinette to ask him to get her a glass from her private pantry. After all, she was a human. 

But that’s not what she did. 

Instead, Marinette took one of the glasses of red from the footman’s tray, and without a second to even think, downed the whole thing. 

Chloe sputtered, unable to comprehend what happened just before her eyes. She looked around her, trying to figure out if anyone else had just seen that, but no one seemed to react at all. They didn’t even notice. 

“Yep, that definitely helped.” Marinette murmured, placing her now empty wine glass on another footman’s tray.

“What have you just done?!” Chloe shout-whispered. She grabbed Marinette by her arm and dragged her out of the ballroom into the hallway nearby. “What--do you know what you just did?”

Marinette stared at Chloe for a moment, confused, until what she was asking finally registered. “Oh! You mean the wine?”

Chloe threw her hands in the air. “Of course I mean the wine! Don’t you know what happens if a human drinks--or eats anything from our realm?! We have to tell my uncle immediately. Or maybe if you throw it up, it’s not too late. Let’s get you to the washroom--” Chloe tugged on Marinette’s arm, trying to drag her down the hall.

“It’s too late, Chloe.”

“No, not if we can get you to throw it up. God, I can’t believe I’m actually talking about this right now--”

Marinette stood her ground against Chloe’s tugging. “No, I mean tonight isn’t the first time this has happened.”

Chloe stopped her pulling and whipped around to face Marinette. “What do you mean it’s not the first time?”

Marinette sighed. “I mean I’ve been drinking Second Realm wine, and tea, and whatever for a little while now.”

“What the fuck?!” Chloe shouted.

Marinette quickly shushed her. “Don’t let anyone hear you.”

“You better explain yourself immediately, then, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. What kind of idiot are you? Did Master Fu not tell you that if you drink our wine, or eat our food, even something as small as a pomegranate seed, you’re tied to this world forever? Traditionally, you wait until your wedding night to do this, but you’re over here casually guzzling down glasses of wine like it’s nothing!”

“It was a mistake!” Marinette groaned and slapped her hand to her forehead. “It happened a couple of weeks ago. Adrien and I were having dinner, and we got to talking about the future--”

“What, and you decided that you were going to stick yourself to him without giving him a choice in the matter by gorging yourself on demon food so he’d have no choice but to keep you? I should have known better than to trust you.”

“No! That’s not what happened at all!” She sighed. “One of the footmen was serving our tea. I guess he got the trays mixed up or something, I don’t know. I was distracted. Adrien was talking about his mother, and what he wanted from the engagement, and what he wanted for the future, and for the first time I felt like we were on the same page! Like maybe we wanted the same things out of this, and I could try considering a future here. We didn’t finish talking for a few hours, and by then I had long finished my tea. The footmen came and took out cups and I noticed the tea bag. It wasn’t one of mine. It had a gold rose on the label.” Marinette dragged a hand down her face. “I went to the pantry later that night and looked through my teas. None of them had a gold rose on the tea bags. So I looked through the tea that they serve Adrien and the Kwami and the Royal Guard. Sure enough, there was the golden rose.

“By then, it was too late. There was nothing anyone could do, so I just kept it quiet. Adrien doesn’t know, and neither does anyone else. I don’t want it to affect the terms of our contract in case he doesn’t want to follow through with the engagement at the end of things.”

“And what if that does happen?” Chloe spat her words like venom, but Marinette didn’t flinch. “What if he flat out rejects you and you have to go home? If you’re away from this realm after drinking our tea, our wine, you could die. Don’t you get that?”

“I know that already. I’ve decided to deal with that if it comes to it.”

Chloe gripped Marinette’s shoulder, digging in with her sharp claw-like nails. “And what if you change your mind?! What happens then?” 

Marinette shook her head. “That won’t happen. I’d already made up my mind when Adrien told me what he wanted. I want him to be happy, and I want to be the person who can make him happy. I don’t know if he loves me or whatever, because what are the chances of that happening in an arranged marriage, but I know that I love him. I also know that he’s lonely, and when we’re together, he doesn’t seem so sad anymore. Not like he was before. I think that’s the real reason Master Fu sent me here. Not to be the  _ Kore _ , not to heal my mother, and not to be Queen one day, but because Adrien has been alone for so long. If I’m here, he doesn’t have to be.”

Chloe smacked Marinette in the forehead with the palm of her hand. “Stupid. Absolutely stupid. I should report what’s happened to the King.” Chloe hated to admit it, but Marinette wasn’t wrong. She’d seen a change in Adrien the past few weeks. Since even before Marinette’s arrival, he’d been less moody, less reserved, less withdrawn. He was laughing again, and singing again, even if he was a terrible singer. “That footman should be fired for his carelessness.”

Marinette shook her head. “Please don’t say anything. I really don’t want this to affect Adrien’s decision. He says he wants me to stay now, but that could change. I don’t want him to marry me because of this stupid mistake.”

Chloe popped her in the forehead one last time. “Stupid. Fine. I won’t say anything to the King. But I will say this to you. Have I ever told you what my demon form is?”

Marinette shook her head and rubbed her forehead where Chloe smacked her. 

“It’s a bee. Maybe that doesn’t sound as scary to you as a minotaur, but bees defend their hives, no matter what, even if it means dying in the process. So I’m going to leave you with a warning. If Adrien gets hurt because of all of this, you won’t have to worry about dying in the human realm, because I’ll take care of you first.”

“I expect no less.” Marinette said, no doubt that Chloe wasn’t making idle threats. 

“Good.” 

With that, the queen bee turned on her heel and stormed off, leaving Marinette to search for another sorely needed glass of wine. 

* * *

Adrien caught up with Marinette again after nearly an hour of brooding, having made his decision. He found her standing in the same corner he’d occupied earlier, the red Taffeite stones in her earrings glistening under the light and reminding Adrien of the weight of what he was going to do.

For now, he plastered his practiced smile on his face and slid up to her side. 

“What’s up, Princess? Did you miss me?” He asked. 

Marinette’s smile was even brighter than the shimmer of the stones, making Adrien’s heart ache. “Princess? What am I, some damsel?” She pressed the back of her hand to her forehead and swooned dramatically. “Oh dear, what ever shall I do? I’m simply dying of boredom! I do hope that my _ Chat Noir  _ comes to rescue me soon!”

Adrien’s laugh was genuine. “ _ Chat Noir _ , huh? I like that one actually. It makes me sound like a dark knight, ready to come to the defense of my princess.”

“Don’t get used to it, Alley Cat.” Marinette teased. Adrien savored the sound of her voice, committing the teasing lilt of it to memory. “You may be a prince, but I can see that under all of that swagger and silk is a street cat waiting to cause some mischief.”

He put his hands up in surrender. “You caught me.”

“You’ve spent too much time with Plagg.” She shook her head and took his arm in her’s. “Let’s have one last dance before this party gets shut down, shall we?”

“Whatever you wish, My Lady.”

Adrien followed Marinette out to the dance floor and wished this night could last forever, even though he knew that all great things had to come to an end. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And hey sweetie, but I need you here tonight  
>  _And I know that you don't wanna be leaving  
>  Yeah, you want it but I can't help it  
> I just feel complete when you're by my side  
> But I know you can't come home 'til they're singin'_
> 
> _La, la la la, la la la  
>  'Til everyone is singin'  
> La, la la la, la la la _


	13. Water Under the Bridge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Water Under the Bridge by Adele  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06GFHQcH_xI

Marinette took her time the next morning getting ready for the day. Tikki and Nathalie both agreed that it would be a good idea to clear her schedule the day after her first ball to rest. Those things lasted hours, and Marinette had not been prepared for the physical and emotional strain it had been.

At the same time, she was very happy. 

Marinette stepped out of the shower and wrapped herself in a fluffy towel. She took a wide-toothed comb to her wet tresses and started working out the knots from the shower.

She and Adrien had connected on a whole new level last night. When he’d first looked at her in the hallway, the look in his eyes...it gave Marinette hope that maybe he would one day feel something for her. 

Then there was the way he took any excuse he could to touch her. The feel of his bare skin on hers was...electric. It was magical. She hadn’t wanted the night to end, but as she and Adrien said goodbye at the end of the night, she reminded herself that there would probably be many more nights like that to come. They would have many opportunities to dance with one another, and laugh, and joke. 

Marinette hummed the tune to a waltz and sent a text to Alya to update her on what happened at the ball before getting dressed in the clothes she had laid out on the counter. The weather in this realm was cooling off, and she was thankful that she’d brought some of her fall dresses. She pulled the red and brown sleeveless dress over her white turtleneck and braided her hair over her shoulder. She should ask if Adrien wanted to have lunch in the garden today, then she wanted to try out the maze. She’d been studying it from above for a while, and she wanted to see if she could find the right path. She put away her hairbrush and towels, and opened the bathroom door, still humming the tune to the waltz. 

She went to her dresser to grab her small pink purse, but found it wasn’t where she left it. 

That was weird.

She checked the drawers, and it wasn’t there, either. 

In fact, none of her things seemed to be where she left them.

Her wardrobe was empty. 

Her cat pillow was gone.

She couldn’t even find the  _ Kore’s  _ earrings where she’d left them on her bedside table. 

She ran out of her bedroom, about to call for one of the Kwami, concerned that someone had broken into the castle somehow and robbed them-- _ Oh God _ , if someone had stolen the  _ earrings _ \--when she spotted Adrien standing next to her tea table, her packed suitcase standing beside him, and her cat plush under his arm.

She stopped in her tracks. “Adrien?” She eyed him curiously. “What’s going on? Why do you have my suitcase?”

His expression was unreadable as he answered her. “I thought we could visit your parents again.” 

Marinette’s eyes narrowed. “My parents?”

“Yes,” He waved his hand nonchalantly in the air. “Nathalie has cleared both of our schedules for a bit, so I thought I could take advantage and take you home for a proper visit.”

“That sounds...very nice.” Marinette said, though a nagging feeling in the back of her mind was telling her something was off here. “Are the Kwami coming this time?”

“No!” Adrien said, a little too sharply. She jumped. “Sorry! No, they aren’t coming this time. It’ll just be us. Father said that with my training, I should be able to take care of you on my own.”

“Alright. So when are we leaving?”

“Right away,” he said. 

“Oh! Okay, then.” 

Adrien gestured for her to come stand next to him, and she complied, still a bit taken aback. It wasn’t that she wasn’t excited to see her family again, especially so soon after her last visit, but she still felt that something was strange. She tried to shrug off the feeling. Adrien was probably just tired. After all, the ball had ended especially late last night. 

Just like before, Adrien summoned the portal using his ring. Marinette tried to take her suitcase, but he insisted on carrying it. He gestured for her to enter the portal before him. 

The walk to the other realm was quiet, but not their usual, comforting silence. 

Marinette wanted to ask what was wrong, but every time she tried, the words got caught in her throat.

Before she knew it, she was stepping through the portal to her world. Instead of stepping out into the park, like she typically did, she stepped directly into her childhood bedroom.

Marinette turned around a few times, disoriented, and stopped when she saw Adrien exit the portal behind her. 

“I didn’t realize you could choose where the portal let out.” She said. “My parents are going to be in for a surprise.”

“It’s the privilege of being an Agreste,” Adrien commented. He placed her luggage and cat pillow next to her desk. She couldn’t help but notice that he hadn’t closed the portal behind him.

“Didn’t you bring anything with you?” She asked, realizing for the first time that he had only carried her pink bag with him.

“I don’t need anything.” He said shortly. 

Now Marinette was sure there was something wrong. “You don’t..?”

Adrien cut her off before she could form a whole thought. “Look, Marinette, I haven’t been totally honest with you.”

Marinette winced, not just at his tone, but the cold look in his eyes. In that moment, he looked just like his father. 

“I won’t actually be staying. In fact, I won’t be coming back, either.”

Marinette’s heart squeezed in her chest. “What are you saying?”

Adrien sighed in exasperation and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I’m saying that I’m breaking off our contract. It has become clear to me that things aren’t working out, and it’s not like you even wanted to be there in the first place, so it’s best if we can just get Master Fu working on finding the real Kore rather than wasting everyone’s time.”

Marinette clutched her chest, fingers bunching the fabric of her dress. She felt tears pricking at her eyes. “What do you mean? That these last six weeks have been...a waste of time?”

“I’ll make sure Master Fu continues to take care of your mother,” Adrien continued as if he didn’t even hear her. “That was a part of the deal, after all.”

He turned back towards the portal, but Marinette grabbed his arm. This couldn’t be real. Just last night they’d danced and laughed and been happy. “Why are you doing this? I don’t understand!” 

Adrien shook her arm off of him and glared at her over his shoulder. She shrank back. She didn’t even know he could look at anyone like that, let alone at her. 

“What is there to understand?” He snapped. “Whatever you may have thought we have doesn’t exist. So just get over whatever you thought was between us and get on with your life. Stop being such a burden and just move on. I won’t come around again.”

Without another word, he stepped through the portal. Marinette reached out, wanting to follow him and demand some answers, but by the time she got her legs to work, the portal was already closing. 

“Adrien!” She called. Her fingers nearly reached through, but she was too late. The portal vanished before her very eyes. 

Marinette’s legs gave out.

This wasn’t real.

It couldn’t be real. 

He couldn’t just...leave her here, could he?

He didn’t even give her a chance to speak, didn’t answer any of her questions. His excuses were shallow, with no substance, but they still cut her through to the core. 

She didn’t understand. 

She thought there was something between them. She thought he cared about her. Just last night, the look in his eyes...

Was she mistaken? 

The tears that had been welling up finally spilled over as sobs wracked through her. 

_ “Whatever you thought we had doesn’t exist.”  _ Adrien’s cold voice echoed in her mind. 

Marinette told herself over and over that this couldn’t be real, that any second she would wake up and it would all be a dream. She would go find Adrien and they would laugh over how stupid this nightmare was, and then she’d finally tell him the truth about how she felt. 

She sobbed on the floor of her childhood bedroom for ages, until she could no longer convince herself that this was a dream.

She distantly heard the sound of her hatch opening, of her parents’ shocked voices asking how she’d gotten there, why she was crying, what happened, but she couldn’t calm down long enough to answer. She felt her father’s strong arms come around her, and her mother’s hands in her hair. 

She curled into her parents, and just sobbed. 

* * *

Adrien collapsed as soon as he made it through the portal and felt his chest constrict. He couldn’t get the look on Marinette’s face out of his head.

Oh God, he couldn’t breathe. He just sat there on her bedroom floor and yanked the ring off of his finger. He threw it across the room so that he wouldn’t be tempted to reopen the portal and take it all back. He couldn’t do that. Not now. 

He curled his arms around himself. He could still hear her calling after him as the portal closed.

Her voice had been strained and thick with tears.

He’d left her crying. 

He’d never wanted to make her cry again.

He’d never wanted to see her hurt again. 

Yet that was exactly what he’d just done.

“It’s okay,” he told himself. “It was the right thing to do.”

Even as he said it, he couldn’t help the tears from falling. 

She would get over it eventually. She was never really tied to his world anyway. One day she would be a famous fashion designer, and she would look back on this and wonder if these six weeks were even real. 

She would live her life, build a family, have her dream, and be happy. 

Without him.

She would forget him eventually, but Adrien knew that he would never forget her, no matter how many centuries he lived.

* * *

Marinette spent that night huddled on the sofa between both of her parents. They let her cry herself out before they even asked her what happened. Then when she was finally exhausted with eyes that could shed no more tears, she told them what happened, what Adrien had said, and how he’d left her there. Then she’d cried between them all over again.

Then Alya had come. Her father must have called her, and for that Marinette was thankful. It was late in the human world, but she was still on demon world time. After a few hours, Alya assured Marinette’s parents that she would stay with Marinette for the night and that they should get some sleep before they had to get back up to prepare the bakery for opening. 

Alya and Marinette both crawled into Marinette’s bed like when they were kids, her cat pillows all banished from the loft and tossed into a pile behind her  _ chaise _ . 

Marinette told Alya more than she told her parents. 

She told Alya about the mix up with the tea, how she hadn’t told Adrien about it, and about how afraid she was now.

She told Alya about how, before she even realized it, she’d fallen in love with him, and she’d been prepared to build a life with him, even if it meant giving up her life here. 

She told Alya about the icy look in his eyes when he told her she meant nothing to him. 

Alya held onto her the whole night and didn’t let go even when they both fell asleep. 

When they woke the next morning, Marinette’s eyes were puffy. Broken capillaries were scattered across her face, leaving tiny red dots in between her freckles. Her normally bright blue eyes were clouded and grey. 

Alya asked her what she would do now, and Marinette told her that she would have to figure out a new plan for herself, though she wasn’t sure what that was yet.

She wasn’t sure of much of anything, really.

The only thing she knew for sure was that she had been foolish to put her faith in the Prince of Darkness and Chaos. She should have known he was going to break her heart in the end. 

* * *

Claude sat at his usual seat at the bar, stirring his drink with a sword shaped muddler.

Something in the air had changed. He could feel it. He couldn’t tell what it was that was different, but he was going to find out.

“The boy is here,” Antoine said, leaning close to Claude’s hooded form.

Claude grinned. Just what he needed. “Perfect. Send him over.”

The lanky redhead took a seat at the stool next to Claude. He was less nervous this time, which meant he was prepared for what he needed to do.

“You called?” Nathaniel asked. 

“I am in need of your assistance.”

“Whatever you need, Sir.”

Claude tapped the muddler against the rim of the glass. “I need you to check on some things for me. Something strange is happening, I know it. In order to gauge the situation, I need you to check on your friend’s family, see if they’re okay, and report back to me as quickly as possible. Do you think you can do that?”

“Of course.” Nathaniel readily agreed. “Marinette has kept in contact with me, as promised, but she hasn’t mentioned anything out of the ordinary. I’ll be sure to inform you if anything changes.”

“Good. I look forward to hearing your report. You may go.” 

The boy seemed to hesitate, but knew better at this point than to question.

Now that his informant was on the job, all Claude had to do was sit back and wait. 

* * *

Nathaniel checked his cellphone. No new messages from Marinette. She hadn’t texted him all day, but he was sure it was nothing to worry about. Just like he’d told Claude, she had been keeping in touch with him regularly. Which, of course, had meant Nathaniel had plenty of intel to pass onto the Order.

His first and foremost concern was Marinette’s safety. He trusted Claude and the rest of the Order to bring her home safely, so he was just biding his time until he knew she was coming home again. Then he would actually be able to help her, and get her away from that monster she called a fiancée. 

He sent Marinette a quick text to see what she’s been up to and went home for the evening. He would make a stop by the bakery in the morning under the pretense of picking up some bread and have a report for Claude by the afternoon.

Hopefully he would have something useful to say.

* * *

Marinette hit send on her message to Nathaniel. She felt bad for not having texting him when she’d first gotten home, but she had to admit that she was a little bit messed up.

She’d finally stopped crying and was starting to figure out where she was going to go from here.

First thing was first, she needed to track down Master Fu and Wayzz. 

Marinette had consumed drinks from the demon realm. It was only a matter of time before she started to see the effects of that. Chloe told her she would literally die being away from it, and dying was not a part of Marinette’s new five year plan. 

That was when she’d remembered that Master Fu and Wayzz were both demons living outside of the demon realm. They’d been doing so for centuries. If anyone had the answer to keeping Marinette healthy, it would be the two of them. 

Unfortunately, when Marinette went to the massage shop where she’d met them before, it was closed for vacation. Marinette could only hope that they would be returning soon. 

In the meantime, she focused on picking herself backup again. 

She was looking into university design programs, working at the bakery, and trying to reconnect with old friends. 

She was going to figure this out, Marinette-style.

She wasn’t going to let some boy bring her down. 

* * *

“Are you sure you don’t want to take a break,” Sabine asked.

Marinette kept folding the dough over, determined to work as many layers into the flakey pastry as she could. “I’m fine,  _ Maman _ , I promise. I need to keep busy.”

“It’s okay if you need to take some time to yourself, Marinette,” Sabine said, rubbing her back. “You’ve been through an awful lot lately.”

“I’m good, really.” She insisted. “How are you feeling, though?”

Sabine patted her daughter on the shoulder. “I’ve been just fine, thank you. That medicine Master Fu gave me has kept me healthy as a horse, as long as I take it daily.”

“Good. Please tell me if you start to feel badly, okay?” 

“Of course dear. Now please don’t over work yourself. And keep hydrated.” 

“Will do,  _ Maman _ .”

Sabine went back up to the apartment to fix lunch for her husband and daughter, who both insisted on working without breaks, while Marinette went back to folding layers of dough and butter. 

She was thankful for her mother’s health, but she was beginning to worry about her own. Her muscles were oddly weak, and whenever she took a moment to rest from even the simplest of tasks, a soreness settled into them as if she had just spent hours working out at the gym. 

And then there was the fatigue. Sure, she wasn’t crying as much anymore, but there was a slight pain in her head that wouldn’t seem to go away. Sleeping made it feel marginally better for a little bit, but a good night’s sleep was getting harder and harder to come by.

The chime tinged at the front of the store, indicating that another customer had entered. Marinette ignored it, letting her father handle things. She had more important things to worry about. She heard him laugh before telling whoever it was that his daughter was in the back making croissants, and to let themselves in.

Marinette pulled her hands out of the dough and grabbed a towel from the counter. She hadn’t been expecting to see anyone--

Nathaniel stepped behind the counter, and Marinette nearly sagged in relief. If anyone had to visit her unannounced at a time like this, she was beyond thankful that it was one of her best friends.

“Marinette!” He gasped. “I wasn’t expecting you to be home.”

“Nathaniel,” Marinette wiped the grease and flour from her hands before tossing the towel to the side and wrapping Nathaniel in the tightest hug she could manage. “I just sent you a text telling you I was home a little bit ago. It’s so good to see you!”

“It’s good to see you too,” he said, a little baffled. “But what are you doing here? I thought you were staying in the other realm.”

Marinette winced and withdrew. She rubbed her arm and let out a strangled laugh. “Things between us...they didn’t work out. I guess that’s what I get for rushing into a things, huh?”

Nathaniel threw his arms around her again. “He didn’t deserve you.” He said. “I’m glad you’re home safe.”

Marinette’s arms circled his back and she tucked her head in the crook of his neck. He’d always been such a good friend to her. “I am, too.”

* * *

Marinette didn’t say much about the demon realm, and Nathaniel decided not to push it. She looked rough and tired, and she would need time to recover. She was probably still feeling the effects of whatever spell that blonde demon had cast over her.

So as long as she was still recovering, Nathaniel promised himself he wouldn’t ask. 

When he left the bakery that afternoon, he went directly to that basement level bar that tThe Order called home. Claude agreed to see him immediately.

“She’s back,” Nathaniel said as soon as he sat down. “Marinette is back, alone. The demon didn’t come with her.”

“Are you sure?” Claude asked. “Did she say if she was free from her contract?”

“She didn’t mention the contract, but she did say the engagement was off. I’m assuming they’re the same thing.”

“How did she seem to you?”

Nathaniel pictured Marinette in his mind. “She was tired. Her energy was low, and she didn’t smile much, but she doesn’t seem to be injured or under any kind of glamour.”

“Excellent.” Claude said. “You have been a fantastic help, young Nathaniel. Your service has been greatly appreciated.”

The leader rose from his stool and made to leave.

“Wait!” Nathaniel said.

Claude stopped, but did not show Nathaniel his face. 

“Aren’t, uh,” he hesitated, bit the inside if his cheek, then continued, “Aren’t we going to hunt him down? Find the portal to their realm, hunt down the demon prince, and kill him?”

Claude chuckled. “I appreciate your enthusiasm, boy, but your job here has been fulfilled. Leave the rest to us. We will see to it that the demon prince is sufficiently punished for his crimes against humanity.”

Antoine’s large hand landed on Nathaniel’s shoulder and he was escorted out of the bar. 

As Nathaniel stood on the side of the road, a hot rage simmered in his stomach. Was Claude cutting him out? After everything Nathaniel had done for the cause? 

No, this couldn’t happen. He had to avenge Marinette’s honor.

There had to be some way he could still be useful to the Order. Something else he could still offer them.

That was when it hit him. 

Max. 

Hadn’t he been planning on asking Max for help figuring out the portal? That was still an option. Nathaniel knew Claude’s plans, and none of them could work without access to the portal. The Order still hadn’t figured out how to force that thing to open. If Nathaniel could convince Max to help him, they could get a reading on the portal and maybe finally figure out how it worked. 

He could prove his worth to the Order, and finally get revenge on that demon scum.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _And if I'm not the one for you  
>  You've gotta stop holding me the way you do  
> Oh honey, if I’m not the one for you  
> Why have we been through what we have been through?_
> 
> _If you're gonna let me down, let me down gently  
>  Don't pretend that you don't want me  
> Our love ain't water under the bridge  
> _


	14. I'm Fine, Thank You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm Fine, Thank You by Ladies Code  
> https://youtu.be/tqRPC66KEbU

Adrien stayed in Marinette’s suite for as long as he could. He even slept in her bed. He did anything he could to feel close to her. At night, he would cradle the box of her earrings until he fell asleep. 

His father had been beyond livid when he found out what Adrien had done, but Adrien pointed out that he was within his rights of the contract to break the engagement at any time. 

Unfortunately, Master Fu was on vacation in the Fifth Realm for another week, and with the solstice quickly approaching, they wouldn’t be able to find another candidate for  _ Kore  _ until spring. 

That suited Adrien just fine. He would need the next six to eight months to learn how to function again. 

Until then, he wanted to spend his days in Marinette’s suite, surrounded by her scent, as if it would bring her closer to him again.

“Marinette,” a shrill voice called from the sitting room, “I have another commision for you--Adrikins? What are you doing in Marinette’s bed?”

Adrien lifted his head. “Chloe. What are you doing here?”

“I haven’t seen Marinette since the ball, and I was hoping she would alter a few more dresses for me. The tailors in town are absolutely useless. They have no concept of style. So where is she?”

“She’s gone.” Adrien said, laying his head back down on the pillow.

“Gone? What do you mean gone?” Chloe threw her hangers and heavy dresses down on the side of the bed. 

“I mean I sent her home. It’s for the best. She never would have been happy here.”

Chloe rounded the bed, one hand on her hip, and grabbed Adrien by the shirt. She lifted him up to eye level, hellfire shining out of hers. “Adrien,” She said through clenched teeth. “What. Did. You. Do?”

* * *

“Stupid!” Chloe smacked Adrien in the forehead. “Both of you are so stupid! I can’t believe I’m actually related to you!”

“I’m telling you, Chlo, she needs to be where she can be happy. A life sentence here with me isn’t going to do that.” 

Adrien swung his feet over the edge of the bed as Chloe paced around the room, processing his story. 

“Adrien, I need you to listen to me, and really hear what I’m telling you.”

Adrien nodded.

“You are the biggest idiot in all of the realms!” 

“I get it, Chloe, you’ve been calling me that since we were kids.” Adrien flopped back on the bed. 

“No, I sincerely, with all of my heart, mean it this time. Because you have no idea what kind of danger you’ve put Marinette in.”

“If you’re talking about the Order or whatever that group that murdered my mother is called, she should be safe from them since we never formally got married.”

Chloe groaned. “No, surprisingly there’s a bigger threat to her out there than the Order, and she might not be as safe from them as you think she is.” Chloe could see that Adrien was going to stay this way unless she did something, which meant revealing the one thing that Marinette made her promise never tell anyone.  _ Oh well, _ Chloe thought, Marinette would probably thank her for it later. Chloe really was such a good friend, after all. “Marinette drank wine from our realm.”

Adrien’s ears twitched.

_ There we go _ , Chloe thought. _ He’s starting to get it. _ “Not just that, but she’s had tea, too. Something about a mix up at dinner one night, I don’t really get all the details. Marinette told me herself. She swore me to secrecy because she didn’t want to pressure you or whatever. I’m guessing when you dragged her back to her realm, you just dumped her there without actually talking to her about what she wanted, right?” Adrien’s silence and the way his ears flattened against his head were enough to tell her everything. “You’re such an asshole. You literally just assumed you knew what was best for her and made a decision for her entire life without even stopping to consider that maybe that’s not what she wanted.”

“Marinette told me that she wanted to go home!” Adrien protested.

“When did she tell you that?” Chloe countered. “Because just the other night she was telling me that she was actually starting to consider a future here. That she wanted to see you happy, and she was actually happy being here with you.”

Adrien let out a pathetic whine as the gravity of his mistake began to settle. He pulled his feet up to the edge of the bed, and looked to Chloe like he was five years old again.

“The point is, she’s already tied to this realm,” Chloe continued. “You didn’t ask her what she wanted and just thought you must know what’s best, just like your father does with literally everything. You’ve just sent her home with no resources to survive. And the Order, who you’re so quick to dismiss, is going to figure that out. In their eyes, she’ll be stained. They’ll kill her for sure, if she doesn’t die first herself.” 

Adrien soaked up everything that Chloe was saying. He flopped back onto the bed. “She wanted to stay?”

“She was thinking about it.”

Adrien turned his nose into the duvet, hoping to catch some her scent lingering there. Unfortunately, it was nearly all gone. She was slipping away from him. He’d sent her away, he’d put her in danger without even knowing it. 

She never told him about the tea.

He hadn’t known. He never even noticed a difference in her. 

“How do you know the Order will even find out? Maybe if I talk to Master Fu, he can help her, and she’ll be okay.”

Chloe shook her head. “The Order has its ways. Believe me.’

“How do you know so much about them?”

“I’ve been following them ever since the last queen passed away. Uncle Gabe swore me to secrecy, but I couldn’t just watch from the sidelines anymore. I was tired of being some helpless ornament with a title and some land. So in exchange for working in the shadows, Nino made me an honorary member of the Royal Guard.”

“So all those vacations you go on aren’t really vacations, are they?” Chloe had always been a somewhat mysterious person, but Adrien had never expected her to be an informant for his father. It irked him a bit that Chloe’s position in the Guard came with actual responsibility and meaning, while his decorative officership gave him a uniform and patrol duty, but he would deal with that later. 

“Some of them are, of course, but I also spend a lot of time traveling between the realms.” Chloe shook her head. “That’s not important right now though. Look, the Order is sneaky. They’ve definitely been watching Marinette and her family, probably as long as we have. They can’t get close enough to do anything without revealing themselves, though.” Chloe laid down next to Adrien and propped her head up with her elbow. “You have two choices here, Adrikins. You can go back to the human realm and actually talk to her, find out what she really wants, and honor her decision, or you can abandon her and leave her for the wolves.”

“I’ve already ruined my chances, Chloe.” Adrien said, remembering her tear filled eyes as he’d walked away.

She popped him on the forehead again, much more lightly this time. “How about you listen to what I’ve been trying to tell you this whole time and let her decide that.” She found the spot behind his ears that he liked and scratched lightly, trying to get them to perk back up again. “I’m not going to lie, you fucked up. Big time. But instead of wallowing and leaving Marinette as a target, why don’t you put some big boy pants on and own up to your mistakes. Go back to her, tell her that you were a dumb ass, and let her decide whether she’s coming back or breaking things off. If she says no, and she would be completely in her rights to do so, then we’ll go to Master Fu about more protections and see about the tea issue.”

Adrien closed his eyes. He knew Chloe was right. Marinette was in danger and he was the one who put her there. 

It didn’t really matter if she came back with him in the long run. All that mattered was that she was safe. In order to ensure her safety, there was only one thing he could do.

“Alright,” He sighed. “I have an idea, but I think I’m going to have to go over your head to do it.”

“Are you done being a dumbass?” Chloe asked.

“I think so.”

“Alright then.” She pat his head gently right between his ears. “I’m in. Just tell me what we’re going to do.”

* * *

It had officially been one full week that Marinette was back home. Her life was starting to feel...well, maybe not normal, but routine again.

She had coffee with Alya and Nathaniel, but she couldn’t really taste it. She baked with her parents in the morning, but she couldn’t smell the sugar. She was even opening her online store again, but inspiration didn’t seem to come. 

But she was trying. 

Marinette refused with all of her heart to let a boy ruin her life. It wasn’t like they had been dating or anything. They may have been engaged, but it was a contracted engagement. Emotions played no role in it. At least on his side. So there was no reason for her to mope around the house like some heart broken teen-novel protagonist. 

So she pushed through. 

And she had hope that things would get better. There was just a slight problem: her body.

Even though autumn in Paris was mild, not yet dropping below 15C, she felt a chill on the air. Even in the warmth of the bakery, she wore a thick sweater. It was getting harder for her to get out of bed in the mornings. Her parents chalked it up to depression, but she knew better. She had to hide under heavy sweaters and baggy jackets to hide the way her ribs had started to stick out. The muscle pains were getting worse, too, progressing into spasms that sometimes reduced her to a little ball on the floor. 

“I don’t know what to do, Alya.” Marinette said, wrapping herself up in another blanket. “I can’t seem to find Master Fu anywhere. When I was in the Second Realm, just calling the name of a demon would summon them, but I’ve called for Wayzz and Master Fu so many times with no luck. His massage parlor has been empty, and I can’t find his cellphone number listed anywhere, if he even has one.”

She curled up next to her best friend on the sofa of her apartment. “I don’t know what else to do.”

“Isn’t there anyone else you can contact? What about those little bug looking things that came last time you visited?” Alya put a mug of hot tea in Marinette’s hands. 

Marinette stared at the tea bag and cursed her rotten luck. If only she’d paid attention before, then she wouldn’t be feeling like this. 

“I don’t think I can get in touch with them, either. The only thing I know is that the portal in the park opens every two weeks at 3 AM. I don’t know how to open it, though. I hadn’t gotten that far in my books yet.” 

Alya sat in the chair across from her and set her phone down on the table. “Maybe we can do some research from this side? Maybe we can get in contact with Juleka? I’ve heard she’s pagan now. Pagans know a lot about demons, right?”

“Maybe.” Marinette nodded. She didn’t relish the fact that she might have to crawl to the castle for help. She’d sworn that if this happened, she would take care of it herself. Yet, here she was, just as ignorant as she’d been from day one. 

“Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out.” Alya assured. “Do you want to see if Nathe wants to get dinner tonight? My mom told me about this new restaurant in the fifth arrondissement that’s got great reviews.”

Marinette shrugged. Why not. Anything to keep her out of the house and busy.

Alya dialed Nathaniel’s number, but he didn’t answer. 

“He’s been a little distant lately.” Alya said, texting him instead.

“Has he? I haven’t noticed.”

“You’ve had a lot on your mind, too, but he just...never really went back to himself. After you came to visit, he got a little better again, but now he’s not answering his phone. I don’t know. I think something’s up with him lately.” 

Marinette shook her head. She should check up on her friend. She’d been so wrapped up in her own problems, she hadn’t considered that he probably had problems of his own. She reminded herself to stop by his place later to check up on him. 

“Oh well. If he wants to come, I guess he’ll text back.” Alya shrugged before launching into a description of her blog’s latest story. 

Marinette listened attentively, hoping that her friend’s happiness would be infectious enough to distract her from the queasy feeling in her stomach.

* * *

Nathaniel walked into his apartment for the first time in what felt like days. Between meeting with the Order, keeping an eye on Marinette, and trying to convince Max that he wasn’t totally crazy and that his theory had value, he was exhausted.

There were six texts from Alya, a call from Marinette, and a few from his mother on his phone, but he just didn’t have it in him to respond to any of them just yet. 

Instead he texted Max.

_ 19:56 _

_ Nathaniel: Look, I know it sounds crazy, but I’ve seen it myself. _

_ Nathaniel: I really need your help. You’re the only one I know with the tech to do this. _

_ Nathaniel: Just hmu if you change your mind. _

 

The response didn’t come right away, so Nathaniel stared at his ceiling and got lost in thought. He had a feeling Claude wanted to cut him out. He’d been feeling it for a while. The Order was definitely keeping him at a distance. Sure, Claude told him he’d been helpful, but what happened when his usefulness ran out? If Max agreed to do this with him, Nathaniel could prove that he had value to the organization. He could help them, if only to help Marinette.

Several hours later, Nathaniel finally got the response he was looking for. 

 

_ 23:41 _

_ Max: Fine. I’ve calculated the risks, and I’ll help you out, but if you are incorrect about this, you’re treating me to dinner _

* * *

Nino was skeptical to say the least.

Chloe was no help. Instead of providing what would have been valuable strategic insight--like was her literal job--she stood off to the side of the Captain of the Guard’s office filing her nails into even sharper claws. 

Adrien figured it was part of her way of punishing him for what he’d done to Marinette. He definitely deserved it, but he could have used her tactical expertise right about then.

“The Order has been a problem for three hundred years, right?” Adrien continued. “The only way we can guarantee safety for all of the citizens of our realm, Marinette, and any future  _ Kore  _ is to put an end to them once and for all. We have to fight back to ensure the safety of our entire realm. Besides that, I’m tired of all this isolation. Our people have been in the dark ages for far too long. It’s time to connect with the Human Realm again.”

Nino still looked ready to shut him down, so Adrien continued before he could. “We have the forces. The Kwami knights are the most skilled, powerful, and well trained forces in all of the dimensions. Chloe has all of the information we need. We know where their hide out is, and I have the ability to open a portal any time I want. We can catch them off guard and take them out.”

“What are you getting out of this, Adrien?” Nino asked, his voice all business. 

“Isn’t it obvious? My mother’s death is finally avenged. My realm and my people are safe again. And Marinette will be safe, too.”

Nino rubbed his forehead. “This is a serious proposal, Adrien. This is a battle of war-like proportions. What happens if something goes wrong?”

“What do you suggest we do instead? Keep waiting for them to come to us? From what Chloe’s told me, we don’t have much time until that actually happens. They’re looking for the portal, and they’re figuring out how to use it.”

“Is that true Chloe?” Nino asked, eyebrows raised. 

Chloe put down her nail file for a moment. “Last time I was on the other side, I managed to get a bug into their headquarters. They have an informant, someone close to Marinette, who was there the night she first came to our realm. He’s been studying the portal for them, and he’s nearly cracked it. Their leader doesn’t trust him. He’s been sucking as much info out of the kid as possible, and he’s planning to kick him to the curb soon. The kid himself isn’t much of a threat, but if the Order manages to make a breakthrough, we’re all screwed.”

“Shit.” Nino pinched the bridge of his nose. “I can’t keep this quiet, you know, Adrien. I have to tell your old man.”

Adrien nodded. He hadn’t planned on keeping this part of the plan a secret, but he would definitely be keeping his role in the larger plan quiet for a bit longer. 

The attack was just a cover. It was a great chance to take out a threat to their society, of course, that much was true. But the ultimate goal was to bring Marinette back. 

His father had taken back Adrien’s ring after he’d misused it so many times. He needed a reason to get it back so that he could bring Marinette back, too. 

So, he told Nino to tell his father, gain his approval, and launch the attack. All Adrien needed to do was get the ring long enough to open the portal and be the last one through. While the troops took care of tThe Order, under Nino’s direction, Adrien would go to Marinette. 

“I’ll see what I can do, but this plan is completely crazy, I need you to know that.” Nino rose from his desk and clapped Adrien on the back. “More importantly, how are you holding up?”

Adrien sighed. Leave it to Nino to see how on the verge of a complete breakdown he was. Or maybe he’d already crossed that line. He couldn’t tell anymore. “I’ll be alright.”

“Let me know if you need anything, man. That’s what bros are for.”

“Right now, I just need to make her world safe for her again.”

Nino nodded. “I understand. Let me meet with the council and I’ll get back to you.”

“Thank you, man.”

Nino looked at him sympathetically before taking his leave.

“You know,” Chloe said. “If your father figures out what you’re actually doing, he’s going to kill you.”

Adrien smirked, his tail swishing conspiratorially behind him. “That’s a risk I’m just going to have to take.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _That day I cried,_  
>  Its goodbye forever in order to be happy  
> Sometimes I laugh at something  
> I’m fine thank you, thank you


	15. Hold On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chiisana Koi no Uta, English cover by Beni, Original by Mongol800  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_KcCveab7A

“I can't believe I agreed to do this,” Max grumbled as he set up his sensors. 

“Anything is possible, Max!” Markov chirped. “You never know what you might find.”

Max rolled his eyes at his robot friend’s unstoppable optimism. Leave it to an emotionally intelligent robot to discard science for magic. 

“I'm telling you, this is real. I just need to figure out how to get it open.” Nathaniel said. “Last time, it opened right over there, between the statue and the big oak tree.”

“Why are you obsessing over this?” Max asked. 

Nathaniel was no longer offended by the critical tone in his friend’s voice. He was used to it by now.  “I just...need to know, okay?” He murmured. He finished setting up the rest of the sensors at Max’s instructions.

Max didn’t need to understand his reasons. No one else needed to understand. He just needed to get any information he could. Anything to help Marinette.

Nathaniel’s heart ached at the thought of his best friend. When she’d first returned, he’d been so relieved to see her back safe. He thought that her part of this nightmare was over.

His relief had been short-lived, though. 

Something was wrong with Marinette. She didn’t talk about it, but he could see her condition deteriorating by the day. Her eyes were dull, and she always had this pained look on her face. There were a few times when they would be out to eat, and her already pale skin would suddenly take on a greenish tinge. The heavy bags under her eyes that she tried to conceal with makeup only made him worry more.

Sure, Marinette was back home where she belonged, but she wasn’t free from the demon’s clutches yet.

Suddenly, a bright light burst forth and filled the clearing. The machines went crazy, beeping and giving off-the-chart readings all over the place. Max shielded his eyes against the sudden burst of light, but Nathaniel kept his eyes completely fixed on the source. The portal had opened, and there was something coming through! He grabbed his camera with the telescopic lense and directed it towards the portal in the clearing. 

“Holy shit,” he murmured, zooming in. 

There was some kind of red and black deformed bug looking thing floating out of the portal,  almost like a pokemon come to life. 

When The Order taught him about demons, this is definitely not what he had expected. 

Nathaniel nudged Max, urging him to uncover his eyes. “Are you seeing this?”

Markov spoke up first. “I am seeing it! What is it, Nathaniel?” 

Nathaniel shushed the curious robot, “I’m not sure, but please keep quiet. Whatever it is, we don’t want it to notice us.”

“Should we be letting it go like that?” Max asked. “I’m sure I have the correct equipment to capture something of that size, though I will admit there are some risks in that we don’t know what it can do.” Max turned his attention to the scanners that were still beeping for attention. He read some of the graphs and began making notes.

“I don’t think that’s a very good idea,” Nathaniel said. He wasn’t sure how far to involve Max in this whole situation. 

As much as his blood boiled at the sight of a creature like that emerging from the portal, seeing solid proof of what Marinette had been through, he didn’t have the resources to actually do anything about it on his own. He needed the help of the Order.

* * *

Tikki absolutely seethed.

She’d been mad at Adrien before, but never like this. And before she left the realm, she had completely let him have it.

She’d been suspicious about the circumstances of Marinette leaving, for sure, but Adrien had been so depressed that she hadn’t wanted to push it by asking. Then Chloe told her the full story. She was livid with that boy, more angry than she’d been with him in his entire life, and he knew it.

Tikki knew she was probably needed for the battle plans they were making against the Order, but she wasn’t sure if she could stand to be in the same room as Adrien until she calmed down a bit. 

Marinette wasn’t technically her charge anymore, but she’d unintentionally become a permanent target for the order when she drank that tea. So when Nino asked someone to volunteer to watch after her while they prepared their attack, Tikki spoke up first. She was the one first assigned to Marinette. She was as protective over that girl as she was over Adrien, and she would never let the Order get to her.

Fortunately, tonight was one of the rare nights that the portal between the realms opened, and Tikki left immediately. Word of her absence would be sent to Adrien and King Gabriel on her behalf.

As Tikki passed through the portal into the Human Realm, she noticed something odd. That red-haired boy from the last time they’d visited--Nathaniel, Tikki recalled--was in the trees with a number of devices. He was aiming a camera at the portal. 

Tikki knew Marinette considered Nathaniel her friend, but something about this situation rubbed her the wrong way… 

* * *

Nathaniel wasted no time sending word to the Order about what he’d seen. He still needed to analyze some of the readings from Max’s scans, but finally they seemed to be getting somewhere with understanding how this portal worked.

Once they had that, they could really set their plan into action.

* * *

It was close to four in the morning. She and Alya had spent the entire night watching movies in Alya’s livingroom. It was the first time since getting home that Marinette was starting to actually feel like herself again.

They had started the evening pouring over college applications and fashion design school brochures, and that had devolved into joking and laughter, and eventually they pulled out all of the junk food and had a movie marathon. It was great to spend time like this with her friends again. 

They were just drifting off in a tangle of blankets and pillows when an incessant tapping started on the sliding glass door. 

Alya groaned. “If that’s that stupid crow again…”

“What crow pecks at a window at this time of night?” Marinette grumbled. She turned her head towards the offending noise, and what she saw made her shoot up, ramrod straight. “Tikki?!”

Right outside the window was the little, red, bug-like Kwami that had been watching after her from the very beginning, tapping at the sliding door to be let in.

“Tikki?” Alya said, her voice sounding considerably more awake than she had been seconds before. She sat up and reached for her discarded glasses. “Like, Tikki-Tikki?”

Marinette scrambled to her feet and threw open the sliding door. “What are you doing here?”

“Marinette!” Tikki shot in through the sliding door and pressed her tiny body to Marinette’s cheek in a little hug. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

“What do you mean? Of course I’m okay,” Marinette said, deliberately ignoring the fact that her muscles have been feeling weaker by the day on top of everything else that’s been happening to her. 

“Something is happening, Marinette,” Tikki said soberly. “I think you should maybe sit down.”

* * *

“I don’t get it,” Marinette said numbly once Tikki finished explaining. “Adrien said he didn’t want me. He told me whatever I thought was there was my imagination.”

While Marinette was struggling to comprehend what the Kwami told her, a fire of fury was lit in Alya. She glared at Tikki, who had given up her Kwami form for her demon one, and slammed her hands against the coffee table. “He basically told her to fuck off, left with no explanation, and now he sends you after her to try and get her back?! Over my fucking dead body.”

“That’s not what’s happening.” Tikki assured her. 

“Then can you tell me what exactly he is trying to do? And what it is you’re doing here?” Marinette asked, trusting Tikki probably more than she should considering the circumstances. She reminded herself that her grudge was with Adrien. Tikki was the one who was always there for her, so the least she could do is give her a chance. 

“I’m not going to tell you to take Adrien back. He made his bed, now it’s his job to deal with it. He wants to come and talk to you himself, and when he does feel free to tell him off, tell him to stay out of your life, anything. But until then, I need to keep you safe.”

“Safe from these ‘Order’ people?” Alya asked, eyes sharp. 

“Yes. Adrien says that the only reason he sent you home is because he didn’t want the Order to hurt you or your family. I’m not going to make excuses for him. He was truly horrible, but the threat is very real. According to our informant, an attack against the demon realm has been in the works for quite some time. That’s why I’m here.”

“But I still don’t understand,” Marinette said, her voice finally wavering. “If I’m here, shouldn’t I be safe? The contract is broken. I’m not tied to The Agreste family any longer, so I shouldn’t be a target, right?”

“That’s the problem,” Tikki said. “The tea you drank.”

Marinette groaned. That fucking tea was going to ruin her life. “Does the Order know?”

“We aren’t sure, but if they do, you’re in serious danger.” 

Marinette pulled her knees up to her forehead. She took a deep, shuddering breath. She felt really really stupid. “I should have told someone about the tea in the first place. I’m sorry, Tikki.”

“It’s my job to take care of you no matter what,” Tikki continued. “Don’t try to do things on your own.”

“I know.” Marinette whispered. “You’re right, Tikki.”

Alya grabbed the bottle of wine from the counter and started pouring glasses. “How long until the shit hits the fan?”

“Nino is gathering the troops now. They’ve already formulated the plan. In the morning, I think it would be wise for us to return to your house. It will be easier for me to keep an eye on everyone at once. For now, though, you should get some rest. I can sense that you’re getting weaker, and we need to keep you as strong as possible until Master Fu returns.” 

Marinette nodded, once again putting her faith in her friend. Now that the cat was out of the bag, she might as well let herself be taken care of. 

Alya offered up her bed, but Marinette insisted that she would be just fine on the sofa. So by nearly five, she was left in the darkened living room, nearly alone. It was just her, and Tikki, who had changed back to her tiny Kwami form to share the sofa with her. 

Marinette hated to admit it, but having Tikki back in her life was a relief. She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed her friend until she came back. 

* * *

It was nearly time.

Nino had orchestrated the guard perfectly. For a small society with no formal army, the Royal Guard was the most elite of their armed forces. They would have the operation completed in just one night. 

Which gave Adrien exactly one night to make things right with Marinette. 

Nino reported to Adrien and his father that Tikki was with Marinette. She was fully protected and secure. 

All that was left was for him to get to her. 

Nino called him, letting him know that the guard was ready to go. 

Adrien’s ring was heavy on his finger. He only hoped that this would work. 

* * *

Nathaniel returned to the park the next evening. He’d given his report to Antoine early that morning, and was relieved to know that the Leader would be getting in contact soon about when they would proceed with the plan.

They still needed to go over the data he brought in a bit more, but it seemed that they were finally getting somewhere.

He knew that the portal was unlikely to open again, but he was so close to a breakthrough that he had to come back. He couldn’t seem to stay away from that park, not knowing that Marinette would be avenged soon.

He sighed and sat on a bench near the Rue Gotlib gate, watching the clearing. It was awfly quiet in the park for this time in the evening. Nathaniel couldn’t tell if the eerie emptiness was what set him on alert, or if it was just anticipation of what the Second Realm had coming. 

Once that was taken care of, Marinette’s life could finally go back to normal

* * *

Adrien’s nerves were on edge.

Open the portal. Let the troops through. Follow them in and find Marinette. 

He could do this.

The Royal Guard’s finest officers and best trained troops were at the ready. Adrien straightened his uniform jacket. It was officially time. 

He nodded at Nino who readied the troops. Adrien raised his ring and summoned  a portal large enough to accommodate their forces. He maintained the portal and watched at Nino directed his men through, sparing a glance at his father’s study window overlooking the garden. 

He had not technically been approved to take part in this mission, but he also was not technically taking part in the battle. 

So before his father’s guards or assistants had a chance to catch him, and after the last of the Royal Guard had stepped through, Adrien entered the portal himself. 

* * *

The flash of light in the clearing had been the last thing Nathaniel had expected to see. According to the Order, the portals had only ever appeared on a few select evenings per month, and always happened around 3:00 AM.

Yet here they were at 7:30 in the evening, the day after a portal had already appeared, and another was opening up. 

Something was going on. 

Nathaniel ducked behind the bench he had been sitting on and grabbed the knife he’d been lent by Claude. It wasn’t the ceremonial athame that the rest of the Order carried, he’d have to work his way up to that one, but it was enough to defend himself. 

He had only expected maybe one or two demons to come through the portal. Instead, there were probably fifty of them, maybe more, of all different shapes, sizes, and colors, marching in sync out of the portal. At the head of them, a grey-skinned, horned demon shouted directions that Nathaniel couldn’t quite make out. 

There was another flash, and all of the demons disappeared, leaving behind those weird, bug like creatures in their stead. The bugs dissipated in clouds, taking off in so many different directions that Nathaniel couldn’t keep up. 

Those demons were planning something. He had to get word to Claude--

He glanced back at the portal, realizing it had not yet fully closed. His knife in his hand, Nathaniel crept around the bench and towards the glowing portal. 

He didn’t get too close though. 

As he approached, something began to emerge.

Nathaniel gripped the hilt of his knife.

It was the demon prince, Marinette’s ex-fiance, in his demon form.

He knew he should get the Leader, but he saw an opportunity and he was going for it. The demon prince was right in front of his eyes--

Nathaniel lunged forward, but before he could bring his knife down, his hand was stopped. A pair of electric green eyes bore into his as the hand tightened around his wrist. 

“You may want to reconsider that,” the Black Cat said. 

He twisted Nathaniel’s arm until he dropped the dagger. 

“I knew there was something off about you,” the demon continued, ignoring Nathaniel’s cry of pain. “To think that you’re really working for  _ them _ .”

“What do you know, you monster?”

The Cat’s eyes narrowed. “I know a lot more than you. I also know that I’m far stronger than you are, and you’re currently in my way.”

“Cat,” another voice called from over the demon’s shoulder, “don’t do anything severe.”

Hovering right above the Black Cat was another, smaller cat with huge green eyes.

“Why shouldn’t I?” The Black Cat snarled, “This guy is putting Marinette in danger.”

Nathaniel recoiled and tried to jerk his hand away.  _ He  _ was putting Marinette in danger? “That’s rich coming from the demon who literally kidnapped her!”

The Black Cat’s lip curled back, revealing sharp canines. “Marinette wasn’t kidnapped. She came because she wanted to. Hasn’t she already told you that?” He laughed a bit, but it lacked heat. “Aren’t you supposed to be one of her best friends? How can you know so little about her?”

That comment was more of a blow than any physical hit he’d ever received. He knew Marinette was holding back from him. Maybe she didn’t care that much after all. “No, Marinette is…” He began. “Marinette is my best friend.”

“So then why did you join the Order? How can you be a part of an organization that is out to kill her?”

“Kill her?! The Order is going to save her from scum like you!” Nathaniel gritted his teeth. All of the rage from the past months came bubbling forward. “You’re the one who stole her soul! She’s so sick now, and it’s all your fault. Once the Order gets a hold of you, you’re going to pay for what you’ve done to her.”

The Black Cat flinched. “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” He murmured. “She’s getting sick?”

“Yes, didn’t you hear me? Whatever you did to her is tearing her apart! I ought to kill you right now for what you’ve done.”

“Listen to me, kid,” The floating cat-bug thing said, “You really don’t want to say things like that in front of the prince. You don’t know what you’ve gotten yourself sucked into. The Order is not who they say they are.”

“Don’t try to fool me with your lies, demon.” Nathaniel said. 

“We’re not the ones filling your head with lies. The Order has been using you, Nathaniel. o,” The Black Cat insisted. “If you won’t believe in us, believe in Marinette. She wouldn’t lie to you, would she?”

Nathaniel reflected back on everything Marinette had told him and Alya, about how she’d genuinely enjoyed being around the Black Cat, and even though she rarely told them about her time in the Second Realm, she rarely had anything negative to say about the realm or the demons who lived with her. Tears welled in Nathaniel’s eyes. “No, it’s just the glamour. You made her say those things.”

“Glamours don’t exist,” The Black Cat said. “And even if they did, don’t you think I could have used it on you already? I would never manipulate Marinette like that. I just...want her to be okay again.”

“She was okay before you barged into her life! We all were! But you just had to come in and ruin everything.” The tears he’d tried to blink away started to spill over. “You and your horde of demons just had to come in and take her away from me. We were happy. Things were good here. Why did you have to take her away?”

The Black Cat took a step back, eyes wide. “I-I didn’t...She never said…Were the two of you…?”

“Together?” Nathaniel chuckled. “No, we were never together like that. I confessed to her back in lycee, but she’s never seen me as anything but a friend. I kept telling myself I was fine with that, that we could just be friends and I would be satisfied. And for a while, I was.” Nathaniel felt his shakey knees start to give out and he sank to the dewey grass below, burying his face in his hands. “I’ve been so stupid.”

The demon sank to his knees in front of Nathaniel, “You have, but you have a chance to fix that. The Order isn’t what they’ve told you they are. They’re a secret society hell bent on destroying the Second Realm. Marinette is getting sick because she’s eaten our food, and she’s been away for too long. If I don’t bring her back with me immediately, she’s going to keep getting worse. Any being that eats food from the Second Realm is eternally tied to it.”

“If you knew this, why did you bring her back here and abandon her?”

“I--” He hesitated. “I didn’t know. I thought I was doing the right thing, just like you thought that joining the Order was the best way to protect her.”

“But the Leader says that he can cleanse her. Maybe they can fix this after all--”

“Don’t you get it? The Order doesn’t want to cleanse her! Their definition of cleansing someone is killing them! So if I don’t get to Marinette before they do, she’s going to be in even more danger than she is already.” The Black Cat took a deep breath to calm himself. “I just want Marinette to get better, same as you.”

Nathaniel hung his head, feeling like a fool for having been so blind for so long. He’d let himself fall right into the palm of the Order’s hand, all because he couldn’t believe in his best friend. “Alright.” He said, “If you can save her…”

“I will.” The Black Cat said, “I promise.” The demon and his little bug friend made as if to leave, but Nathaniel stopped them.

“Wait, before you go, there are some things I need to tell you. If you’re going to be protecting Marinette, you need to know this.”

“Please be quick,” the tiny cat said, “we only have a little bit of time.”

“The Order is very powerful. As soon as they know you and the rest of those demons are here, they’re going to try to kill you. They’ve been planning an attack on your realm, and they’ve trained hard. The only missing piece to their puzzle is how to break open the portal. I...may have helped them in that area. A lot. They’re having a meeting tonight to go over battle strategies. They have weapons, a lot of them, specially designed to take demons out quickly and effectively. The Leader is the most dangerous one of all of them. He’s strong and quick. You’ll need a lot of power to take him down.”

“Where is this meeting taking place?” The Black Cat asked.

“ _ La Papillon  _ Bar. It’s their headquarters.”

The demon nodded. “Thank you,” he said genuinely, “I’ll pass this information on to the Guard.” 

“Just...keep Marinette safe.”

“I will.” 

The Black Cat stood, the 

* * *

Nathaniel left the park with a heavy heart. He hoped he made the right choice by telling The Black Cat about the Order’s plans.

He reflected on all of the time he had wasted fighting against what Alya and Marinette and her parents were telling him, eyes clouded by what he was too afraid to see. He’d almost lost his best friend in more ways than one, he could see that now. 

He could only hope that Marinette would get better, and that she would find it in her to forgive him for what he’d done. 

He wasn’t watching where he was going as he walked. Even though the streets were fairly quiet, he should have paid better attention to his surroundings. But he didn’t, and he ran straight into another man’s chest. 

Nathaniel staggered back and forced out a shake apology to the man in front of him, “I’m sorry. I didn’t--”

“Just the boy I wanted to see,” Claude grinned. 

Now that Nathaniel’s eyes had been opened, he could see the malice lying underneath that grin. For the first time since they met, a rush of fear ran through him at the sight of his former Leader.

“I have a small favor to ask of you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _With this simple melody, we can change the world today._   
>  _So, hold on_   
>  _The happiness we seek has always been beside us_   
>  _So close, yet so far away_   
>  _And now, I sing this simple song and pray that it will reach you_   
>  _To bring you back where you belong._


	16. Better Than I Know Myself

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _I get kinda dark, let it go too far  
>  I can be obnoxious at times, but try to see my heart  
> 'cause I need you now, so don't let me down.  
> You're the only thing in this world that I would die without._

It was evening, so Marinette should be at home. Tikki had promised Nino before leaving that she would keep her inside when it started to get dark, and Adrien trusted her. As planned, Plagg stayed in Adrien’s pocket, silently keeping watch for any members of the Order who might try to ambush them, not that Adrien was particularly worried about them. He’d only been in combat training nearly since he was born. He’d already proven that he could take down an enraged minotaur with little issue, so in the event that a few humans came at him, he felt that he could take care of them fairly easily.

More than the threat of a horde of humans gunning for his blood, Adrien was worried about a single _Kore_ woman who had been simmering in anger for going on three weeks now. She not only had enhanced speed and strength for someone born human, but she was probably the only person left in all the realms with the ability to completely break his heart.

* * *

“He’s on his way,” Tikki said, staring out the bakery’s window. “I can feel it. Plagg is with him.”

Marinette glowered out the window she was polishing. The bakery had been closed for a couple of hours, but since this was the day the attack against the Order had been planned for, Marinette was trying to keep her hands busy to keep from worrying so much. It hadn’t worked.

Tikki told her about Adrien’s plan.

According to her, he set up this whole battle in order to come get Marinette, which was absolutely ridiculous. It was beyond stupid and only served to annoy her further.

She couldn’t figure out if he was coming to try to apologize, or if finding out about the tea she’d been served had somehow changed his mind about her. Whatever he was doing, Marinette wasn’t keen on the fact that he was coming at all. She’d just started putting herself back together, and as hollow as it seemed compared to the one she’d been building in the Second Realm, it was still her life. He had no right to just abandon her and come running back whenever he wanted.

“If Adrien is coming, that means the battle is starting soon. We need to get you upstairs,” Tikki warned.

Marinette sighed and put down the cloth. She would just deal with the rest of the polishing in the morning, she supposed.

When she reached the second floor, her parents were already sitting in the kitchen. She took a moment to remind them not to kill Adrien on sight when he showed up.

She had to remind herself the same thing.

Things were quiet.

Instead of stewing in her petulance, Marinette tried to keep her hands busy. She set out some cookies for Tikki, some camembert for Plagg, and made a pot of tea for herself. The Kwamis would need their strength should anything go wrong tonight.

She scowled into the teapot as she realized that she’d unintentionally made peppermint tea--Adrien’s favorite. She’d done so without even thinking, as if it was the most natural thing in the world to make tea he would enjoy as well.

She poured the glass she’d just made for herself out in the sink, and was about to dump the pot, too, when she heard a light rapping against the window. Her parents gave each other a meaningful look, but otherwise kept their thoughts to themselves.

“Is it safe to open it, Tikki?” she asked, not even bothering to look for herself.

“Yes,” Tikki said, “The only ones I can sense within a hundred meter radius are Plagg and Adrien. You should be perfectly safe.”

“Safe from tThe Order, at least.” Marinette murmured as she crossed to the large, floor length window in the living room. Adrien was standing with his back pressed against the window, surveying the street below. Marinette hated herself for the way her heart clenched at the sight of him.

Without warning, Marinette pulled open the window, standing to the side so that she could have the pleasure of watching the cat-demon fall into her living room flat on his tail. She closed the window and noticed a blur of black escape Adrien’s pocket from the corner of her eye--Plagg, she figured.  He did a lap around the apartment before settling quietly in the kitchen next to Tikki to enjoy the snacks Marinette had prepared.

Marinette took a step to stand over Adrien as he sat up, rubbing the back of his head. She made no move to help him to his feet.

She glared at her ex-fiance, arms crossed over her chest. “I'm giving you two minutes to explain why you dragged your ass back here before I kick you out.”

Adrien winced. He deserved this. He deserved all of it, but it didn't make it any easier to take.  He pushed himself to his feet before speaking, eyes darting between Marinette and the two very angry, glaring parents sitting next to the Kwamis. “I came to apologize.”

She scoffed. “That's all you have to say?”

“No! Of course not.” He took a deep breath. “I did something horrible to you. I was an asshole.”

“You were an asshole,” Marinette readily agreed. “You just..tossed me out like a piece of garbage, no explanation, just a promise to completely disappear from my life. I was so confused! You didn't explain anything. And now, here you are making up excuses to come take it all back?” Her chest heaved, and her nostrils flared.

Adrien made a conscious effort not to break eye contact. He poured as much sincerity as he could into his gaze, hoping that seeing how much regret he had could help convince her. “You're right,” He murmured. “I know you are. I never explained anything because I wanted you to hate me. I figured if you hated me it would make it easier for you to move on with your life.” Adrien sighed. His tail wrapped around his ankle. “I thought you would live a happier, safer, fuller life if I wasn't in the picture. You have a family, and dreams in this world. In my world, all you have to look forward to is a lifetime of cold walls and loneliness.”

“Says who?” Marinette snapped. “You act like you know what's best for me. You want to know what hurts more than everything else? You never once asked how I feel or what I want. When I realized my priorities were changing the first thing I did was ask you what you wanted for your future. I was falling in love with you, Adrien. When I was with you the walls weren't cold, and I wasn't lonely. Believe it or not, I actually care about the Second Realm and it's people. I thought you knew that. I thought you knew me. I guess I was wrong.” She stormed over to the couch, having now gotten just about everything she wanted to tell him off of her chest, and flopped onto it. She immediately felt the ache in her bones, and prayed that she didn’t have another muscle spasm coming.

Adriens heart thundered in his chest at her confession, but he didn't have time to dwell on that. “You're right.” He took a step towards her, still hyper aware of their audience, he realized that his words not only had to convince Marinette, but her parents as well. “I never asked you. I should have, but I didn't. All I want is for you to be happy, Marinette. I guess I was blinded by my own experiences. Before you came, that castle was a prison for me. The thought of trapping you in that prison with me so that you could slowly come to hate me was killing me.”

“So you’d rather I hate you all at once instead?” Marinette scoffed. “Good job with that. You’ve been very successful.” In spite of her anger, or maybe because of it, Marinette felt tears welling up in her eyes. She internally cursed and tried to blink them away.

Of course, he noticed them. He could smell her tears before they began to fall. They smelled like the ocean, and made his heart break all over again. He had seen her cry before, of course, but he hadn’t expected to ever actually face the tears he’d caused.

For the first time since arriving on her windowsill, Adrien took a good look at the woman he loved. She looked nothing like she had when he’d left her here. Her normally silky black hair was dull and limp. Her skin had lost it’s bright sheen, it’s pallor emphasizing the deep, violet circles under her eyes. And when had she gotten so skinny? She had always been tiny, but now she looked as though she would break at the lightest touch.

He felt his throat constrict painfully. His heart ached in his chest, and he was finding it difficult to get a full breath in. She was literally withering away in front of him.

Seeing her like this reminded Adrien of the reason he really came. Marinette may never love him, that was a fact he was going to have to accept. But he could still save her, if only she would let him.

In this situation, owning up to his mistakes and trying desperately to get through to the woman he loved, Adrien knew of only one thing to do.

Adrien sank to the floor before her and did something his father had trained him never to do. _A prince never lowers his head,_ Gabriel’s voice rattled in Adrien’s head. He ignored it. He knelt before Marinette’s feet and took her hand gently in his own. He lowered his forehead, pressing his skin to the back of her palm in reverence.

Marinette, for her part, had studied enough etiquette and tradition from the Second Realm to recognize the significance of Adrien’s position. It was one reserved for seeking grand favors of someone in a higher position than oneself, one reserved for prayer, or used as a last resort, and an act that a member of the royal family most certainly never performed. Yet, here Adrien was on his knees in her living room, pouring his heart out to her, begging for her to even just hear him out.

Marinette was far from ready to forgive him, but seeing this desperation in him, maybe it was alright to believe in him, even just a little bit.

Without lifting his head or raising his eyes to Marinette, Adrien spoke. “I have been alone for a long time. When my mother died, the light, every bit of happiness in my world, died with her. I was alone for three hundred years before you came into my life, and the only thing I wanted was to hold onto your light, but you wanted something different. When I saw how happy you were to be home with your family, and when I saw how talented you were when you made those dresses for the ball, I thought that I was doing you a favor by letting you go. The truth is, it ruined me to let go of you. Telling you I didn’t care was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. When I returned to the castle, the walls had never been colder. I left my heart behind when I left you here, Marinette.” Finally, Adrien raised his head and electric green eyes met midnight blue. “I’ve never loved anyone as much as I love you.”

Marinette wanted to stay mad at him. She wanted to turn away, to turn him away, and go on hating him. She didn’t want to believe that his apology and confession were anything more than pretty words designed to win her back. Yet, seeing the heat behind his gaze, the desperation and sincerity, and the fine lines of stress marring his perfect features, Marinette felt her resolve weaken just a little further. She found that more than her childish desire to stay angry with him, she believed in him, believed what he was telling her.

“You don’t have to accept my apology, or ever forgive me, but please just come home with me. If not to re-instate the engagement, at least come so that we can keep you healthy. Master Fu will be away for another week at least, but judging by your condition,you can’t stay here much longer. So, if you won’t forgive me, at least come back until we can get you some help. You have every right to hate me, so if it’s what you want, I’ll stay as far away from you as possible. Then, once we’ve figured things out, I’ll bring you home and you won’t hear from me ever again.”

Marinette believed him. Not that he would abandon her again, but that if she asked him to leave her alone, he would respect her wishes.

The look in his eyes tugged at her heart, but she reminded herself of all the ways their parting had damaged her. She could go back with him. She could hear him out, and they could work things through. But what if she went back with him and rebuilt everything only for it to be broken down again? She was setting herself up for even greater heartache.

But even so….

“I don’t...want that.” She murmured. The tears she’d been trying to hold back finally began to fall. “I’m still mad at you,” she said, “but I’m finding it difficult to hate you.” She took her hand from his and stood, bringing him up with her. “I should want you as far away from me as possible, and I should reject your apology. I shouldn’t even believe what you’re telling me right now, but I do. And I should want you to leave me alone, but...that’s not what I want at all.” She lightly pounded her fist against his chest, not enough to hurt, but enough to get her point across. “I’m still mad,” she repeated, “but that doesn’t mean I want you to disappear from my life.”

Adrien’s breath caught at the sensation of her hand tenderly brushing over his shoulder. “Marinette, you don’t…”

“You hurt me. A lot.” She said, rubbing the tears out of her eyes. “But I still care about you.”

Adrien’s heart stuttered in his chest. Even after everything he’d done, she still…

“Don’t get me wrong, I haven’t forgiven you completely, yet,” She clarified, still gently smoothing out his shirt over the place where that minotaur pierced his shoulder. “But I think at the very least we can discuss things like adults. If you’re willing, at least.”

Adrien’s hands shook. He knew he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. He reached out with trembling fingers and grasped Marinette’s shoulders. When she didn’t shove him away or flinch from his embrace, he gave in and pulled her against him in a tight embrace. After a moment of hesitation, he felt her arms come around him as well.

Adrien knew this didn’t solve everything, but it was a start.

* * *

Once things were settled with Marinette, Adrien faced her parents. They were far less inclined to give him a second chance. In their own words, they had been firmly against the arrangement to begin with, and they would not stand for having their daughter hurt the way she had been. They made it very clear that they were only allowing her to go without a fight because, as much as she was trying to hide it, they could see her falling apart.

Tom was visibly displeased. Even Sabine, who was typically the more understanding of the two, was seething.

Marinette shoved Adrien and the kwami upstairs while she spoke with her parents to prevent a larger confrontation.

“I don’t like this, Marinette,” Tom said. “I don’t like that you have to go back there with him.”

“I know, Papa.” Marinette said. “But this is the only way I’ll get better. Maman’s treatment isn’t finished yet, either. I can’t help her if I’m the one who’s sick. That’s why I started all of this in the first place, remember?”

“Marinette,” Sabine chastised, “I’m much better now, and even if I’m not one hundred percent in the clear, I can deal with that. What I can’t deal with is you putting yourself in danger, and going with that demon again.”

“I’m going to hear him out,” Marinette said firmly. “I’m not saying I completely forgive him, but I’ve grown up with parents who know how to deal with their problems. If I’ve learned anything from the two of you, it’s how to resolve things in a healthy way. If that’s possible with Adrien, I’d like to try.”

“Is this really love?” Tom asked. “It’s not some kind of stockholm syndrome or something?”

“It was love before.” Marinette said. “I have to see if that feeling has survived. Besides, I’ve never once been a prisoner with them. If Adrien says he’ll let me go once things are settled, I believe him.”

She pulled both of her parents into a hug. “I promise, I won’t be gone long this time. And I’ll call every day.”

Her father wrapped his arms around both of his girls as if it were the last time. Tears welled in his eyes. His daughter was all grown up. She wanted to face her problems head on, and as much as he wanted to hold onto her to keep her safe, he had to let her do this on her own.  

“I’ll let you know that I’ve made it over safely, okay?” Marinette promised.

“Be sure that you do,” Sabine said.

She gave her daughter one last kiss on top of her head.

Marinette bid her parents goodnight before climbing the stairs to her loft bedroom.

Adrien was sitting stiffly on Marinette’s chaise, Tikki and Plagg next to him. Rather than her large suitcase like before, they’d prepared her backpack for their trip to their realm.

“We need to get you out of this realm as soon as possible,” Tikki said, addressing both Marinette and Adrien. “The Order has probably already figured out that we’re here. We can’t risk putting either one of you into any more danger.”

Marinette nodded. She was beginning to feel dizzy from all of the exertion of the evening, anyway.

“Once we get back to the Second Realm, we’ll find you something to eat,” Plagg said, coming to rest on Marinette’s shoulder. “Once you get something from that side in you, you’ll start to feel better right away.”

Marinette nodded. Though the thought of food made her stomach churn, she just wanted to get back to normal. She would do just about anything to do that.

Adrien rose from his seat, his ears flicked back, showing his hesitance. “Are you ready?”

Marinette nodded. “Let me just grab my phone.”

She climbed up to her bed and snagged her cellphone and charger from the shelf. She was about to text Alya an update, when a notification from Nathaniel caught her attention.

_9:47 PM_

_Nathaniel: Marinette, please come quickly._

_Nathaniel: I think I’m in trouble._

_Nathaniel: I’m at Le Papillion._

_Nathaniel: Bring the cat. It’s bad._

 

Marinette’s phone slipped right out of her hand and clattered to the floor.

“Um, Adrien,” she called. “Something is very wrong.”

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _I know it gets hard sometimes,  
>  But I could never leave your side no matter what I say._
> 
> _'Cause if I wanted to go I would have gone by now  
>  But I really need you near me to keep my mind off the edge.  
> If I wanted to leave I would have left by now,  
> But you're the only one that knows me   
> Better than I know myself._


	17. Stuck

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stuck by MonstaX  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro74Ki2jsNg

Something was very wrong. 

First of all, how did Nathaniel even know Adrien was here? She definitely hadn’t told him that. 

And why was he hanging around at a bar at this time of night? 

What could have possibly happened to him?

Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. 

“Adrien, where is the confrontation with the Order supposed to happen?”

Adrien glanced up to where she stood on her ladder. “In  _ Le Papillion _ bar about a kilometer down Rue Gotlib. I don’t want you this close to it, so we should really get going…”

“Nathaniel is there. Adrien, I think something bad has happened to Nathaniel.” Adrien approached her ladder and she handed him her phone. Plagg studied the text message over his shoulder.

“No way,” the Kwami said. “You’re not going anywhere close to this.”

“This is definitely a trap,” Adrien agreed. “I can’t let you go there. Let’s let the Guard take care of things.”

Marinette sat down on the ledge of the ladder. “He’s one of my best friends. I know that it’s dangerous, but I haven’t been a very good friend to him lately. If he’s asking for my help, and I don’t go, what kind of person does that make me?”

“A smart one.” Adrien said. 

“I’m not completely helpless, you know,” she reminded him. “We’ve sparred before, and if I remember correctly, I’m actually ahead by a couple of matches.”

Adrien grimaced. He should have known that she would use that against him. It was true. She could typically hold her own against him in fencing and hand to hand combat, despite having little-to-no training prior to a few months ago. He hadn’t even been going easy on her. Aided by her speed and strength as  _ Kore _ , she was nearly as competent in a fight as he was, and he was trained by Nino. 

“You’re not well, Marinette,” Adrien pleaded. “I know you’re trying to look strong, but I can sense your energy fading. If we don’t get you back soon, you could get really hurt. Please.”

Marinette saw the genuine worry in Adrien’s eyes and felt the last of her reservations about going back with him disappear. She nearly gave into the way his ears lay flat against his head. “I’m sorry, I have to do this. I know it’s stupid, and it probably is a trap, but if I don’t go I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.” She climbed down the stairs the rest of the way and brushed past him. 

“Marinette,” Adrien said, his voice firm as he reached out to grab her hand, “We aren’t going anywhere near that bar. That’s final.”

Marinette whirled around to look him dead on, her eyes like ice. “Are you sure that’s how you wanted to say that?”

Okay, so maybe his wording could use some work, but he wasn’t backing down on this. “I told you, Marinette, it’s too dangerous. The best thing for you right now is to come back with me and get some rest.”

“You really don’t want to be telling me what’s the best thing right now,” Marinette said through gritted teeth.

“Your safety is more important. We’re going to take you to the castle--”

“And what?” She challenged. “Trap me there? Like your Father wants to?”

Marinette’s words pierced through him like a knife. Was she comparing him to his father? The thought gave Adrien a moment of pause. Was he acting like his father by trying to control Marinette like this?

Adrien looked to Plagg and Tikki. He knew they wanted him to stop Marinette, but they also looked as clueless as he felt as to how. She was stubborn. On one hand, he could probably throw her over his shoulder and drag her through the portal right then.. If he were his father, he would have ignored what she wanted and dragged her with him. 

On the other hand, the last thing Adrien wanted was to be like his father. 

“Alright.” He sighed. Both of the Kwami in the room protested loudly, but he ignored them. “I’ll take you. But you have to promise me that the minute I say we’re going, you will come with me. This is a critical situation. It’s the first attack we’ve ever launched against the Order, and if things go well it might be our last.”

“Deal. You can summon a portal anywhere, right?”

Adrien nodded. “As long as I have my ring.”

“Then we’re good to go.”

He couldn’t believe he was giving in to this. It was risky, against protocol, and Nino would probably kill him, but no one ever said he made good decisions.

* * *

 

The bar was surprisingly close to Marinette’s house. It had Adrien’s skin crawling to know that the headquarters of the people who wanted them dead had been so close to her the entire time. 

He sent Plagg ahead to alert the Guard of the change in plan, and to encourage them to get into position in case anything went haywire, which left just Marinette, Tikki, and himself. 

Tikki had transformed into her demon form to be more useful in the event of a fight, but Marinette chastised them both for sticking out too much.

“If you don’t want to draw attention to yourselves, at least wear this,” she had said before shoving a hat over Adrien’s ears and a hooded jacket over Tikki’s bright red hair and antennae. 

Adrien thought it made them look more suspicious, to be honest, but this was her world, so he would trust her judgment. 

Marinette stared down the stairwell on the side of the building, leading down to a heavy wooden door with a stained glass window of a crude looking violet butterfly. 

Marinette glanced at Adrien over her shoulder. He nodded. He and Tikki were ready, and he knew that the rest of the Kwami were at the ready in the shadows. 

She grasped the handle, took a deep, steadying breath, and pushed the door open. 

It was dark inside the bar. 

Adrien kept one hand at the small of her back, and threw the hat off of his head so that he could catch the sound of even the smallest movement. His tail flicked behind him with nervous tension. It was too dark even for his enhanced vision, which was frustrating beyond belief. 

“It’s quiet,” Marinette murmured. Her posture shifted slightly, ready to react. 

Adrien stepped closer to her. He could hear the shift of clothing across the room, and suddenly the light came on.

“Thank you for joining us, _ your Highness _ ,” said a hooded figure standing behind a table at the back of the bar.

Adrien felt Marinette’s back stiffen, but she did not flinch away from him. 

The man stepped forward and removed his hood. He was a tall, blonde man with green eyes that struck Adrien in their familiarity.

“Who are you,” Marinette asked, “Where is Nathaniel?”

“Your friend is fine,  _ Mademoiselle Kore _ .” the man sneered. He held up a black cellphone and hit the home button. “I just borrowed this for a little while.”

Adrien stepped closer to Marinette and heard the slight intake of breath. On the screen was a picture of Marinette, Alya and Nathaniel laughing together. It was the same photo Marinette kept as the home screen on her phone. 

“You stole his phone?” Marinette said, the heat in her voice menacing even to Adrien’s hears.

The man was not phazed. “Your friend has been a great help to my organization, you know. Thanks to his intel, we were able to track your movements. Just this morning, he has provided us with valuable data on how that portal of yours works. We’ve been working on that portal for decades, and one obsessive kid was able to get what we needed in just a few months.” He chuckled. “He was so upset when you disappeared, so angry. He reminded me of myself many years ago. It was easy to convince him to join our efforts.”

“Nathaniel did?” Marinette whispered. That wasn’t right. Nathaniel was her friend. He didn’t even know about the Demon world. She’d kept that from him, not wanting him to worry about her. She knew he was upset with her, but could he have really fallen into the hands of an organization like this? 

Marinette was still processing what he was saying, trying to make sense of it, so Adrien spoke up. “You still haven’t explained yourself. Tell us who you are and where Nathaniel is.”

The man laughed again, the sinister sound raising Adrien’s hackles and grating against his nerves. “Is that really any way to speak to your uncle, little prince? After so much time, I would have expected a warmer welcome.”

“What are you even talking about? My only uncle is a duke of my realm.”

“How cold of you to forget,” He continued, a sickening, humorless grin spreading on his face. Those eerie green eyes glistened with something dark that Adrien couldn’t quite name. “After your father tainted my beloved sister, the least he could have done is tell you about the family he stole her away from.”

Adrien struggled to comprehend what he was saying, when something clicked in his mind. 

_ “By her brother,”  _ His father had said,  _ “...believed we had somehow tricked her, or tainted her somehow…” _

Adrien grabbed Marinette’s shoulder, in part to steady himself.

_...believed she must have sold her soul to the devil.”  _

His father’s words echoed in his mind.

Adrien pulled Marinette behind him in a near panic. She was in far more danger than he’d realized. “You’re my mother’s brother.” He said, his voice laced in ice, his claws itching to scratch. 

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet my nephew face to face,” he said. “You can call me Uncle Claude.” That grin that had given Adrien a chill earlier split into something far more sinister and terrifying. 

The look in his eyes was enough to have Tikki step in front of both Adrien and Marinette. Her hands were already glowing pink with energy, ready to put her Kwami powers to use. 

“Adrien, I think it’s time for you and Marinette to get out of here,” Tikki warned quietly. 

Adrien sensed a shifting outside of the building, the royal guard responding to the heavy tension inside. “Wait.”

Adrien took a step forward, but was stopped by Marinette’s hand on his arm. “Adrien, what is happening?”

Adrien covered her hand with his, gave it a gentle squeeze, and removed it from his arm. He repositioned her behind him again, not wanting to give Claude an opening to get at her. “This is the man that killed my mother.”

Marinette’s gasp was drowned out by the sound of Claude’s baleful laughter. “I killed her? I think you’re mistaken, little prince. I saved her. She was tempted by the devil, corrupted by the darkness and sin of your world. My sweet, kind sister was gone the moment she met that beast she married. When she came home to take our parents’ souls with her into the darkness, I knew there was only one way to save her. I had to cleanse her soul and send her to be with the light.” 

Marinette felt herself trembling. This went far deeper than she ever imagined. Tikki had mentioned some of the circumstances surrounding the previous Kore’s untimely death, but she’d kept some of the darker details from her. Now, she found herself face to face with the man who not only killed his own sister, but who had built an entire following in order to eliminate the Agreste bloodline, and the entire demon realm.

“How are you even still alive?” Tikki said, the energy in her hands crackling with the strain of holding herself back. “The Queen died three hundred years ago. Her brother was human. He couldn’t have possibly…”

“You think you demons are the only ones who can cheat death?” Claude’s voice grew raspy. “I’ve been watching that green kid and the demon who masquerades as an old man since they took my sister from me. Demons aren’t supposed to be able to survive outside of their world, right? But these two managed to do it without a problem, so they had to be doing something to keep themselves from keeling over.” 

Marinette had come to the same conclusion when she realized her own health was in trouble. Was this man saying that, by watching Master Fu and Wayzz, he had uncovered the secret to eternal life? 

“They weren’t very good at hiding it in the beginning. I figured them out easily. From there, it was just a matter of time. Your kind would look for a new queen eventually, and I would be there, ready to take you out when you did. You demons think you can come into our world, corrupt our women, and spread your evil without consequence? The Order came about in order to bring an end to your tyranny over our realm.”

“Adrien,” Tikki said, “I think it’s time for you to use your ring.” 

Adrien nodded. He took Marinette’s hand and prepared to run out the door through which they’d come. It was clear that Nathaniel wasn’t here, which meant it was time for them to go before things got any uglier.

“You’re not going anywhere. You were stupid enough to get sucked into my trap. I’m not about to let you leave when things are going perfectly according to plan.”

A tall, muscular man appeared behind Marinette, standing in front of the only exit from the bar. 

“If I take you out, I take out the monarchy. Without a Kore or a prince to lead the demon realm, it is only a matter of time before the rest fall as well.”

Adrien clenched his fist. “You realize we have this building surrounded, right? You can’t keep us here.”

“You may have this place surrounded,” Claude said, the wicked gleam in his eyes glinting under the low light. “But we outnumber you.”

As he said that, doors to back rooms opened, and several men and women poured into the room, their faces obscured by violet domino masks, each of them carrying what appeared to be a ceremonial, silver kris dagger. The handle of each of them held the same purple stones in the shape of a butterfly. The blades caught the low lights, reflecting on the razor sharp edges. 

There were easily 100 people in the long, narrow room, twice as many as the Kwami guard standing outside. Normally that wouldn’t be a concern. Kwami knights were among the most powerful in all of the realms, but they couldn’t help if Adrien and Marinette were surrounded like this. 

Adrien really hadn’t wanted to do this in front of Marinette, but it looked like he had no other choice. He turned to face her, eyes drawn and serious. He memorized the curve of her cheek and the deep blue as if it was the last time he would see them, just in case. 

“Marinette, I need you to promise me that as soon as you see an opening, you will get out of here.” He commanded. 

She nodded. Her eyes tightened and the squeezed his hand in affirmation. 

“For now, stay close to me, and don’t let me touch you.” He warned. He released her hand and closed his eyes, focusing the power he could feel within him into the palms of his hands. His hair stood up on end, and his tail twitched behind him.  _ “Cataclysm!”  _ He called, summoning the ancient power of destruction passed down among members of his bloodline for generations.

The energy in the room surged and swirled around him. It had been a long time since he’d summoned the full power of destruction. Adrien opened his eyes, now glowing far more than usual. He ran his tongue over his fangs, now sharper and longer than they had been before. In each of his hands, he held a black, smokey ball of energy, much like a sphere of lightning that would reduce anything he touched to ashes and rot. 

He had never used it on a living being before, human or demon, nor had he ever wanted to. It wasn’t in his nature to kill another sentient being, but to protect Marinette from these monsters, he was willing to do anything. 

He flexed his fingers, releasing another surge of energy that billowed out from where he stood. Several members of The Order staggered from the intensity of it. The surrounding windows shattered with a loud crash, littering the floor with glass. 

A gust of chilled air blew through the bar. 

The only sound that could be heard was the static crackling from the Cataclysm in Adrien’s hands.

He smirked. Was this show of power all it took to reduce these humans to petrified silence? He started to wonder if he could get Marinette out of there safely after all. 

He was ready to summon the portal when a grating laugh stopped him in his tracks. 

His eyes were drawn back to Claude, who was slowly approaching them. “You think your little magic trick is enough to deter me? I’ve been preparing for this day for far too long.” He shifted his cloak back to reveal his hands. Between his fingers, he held several long, thin, hollow throwing needles. 

Adrien wrapped his tail around Marinette’s waist and pulled her closer to him.  

Claude readied his weapons, and pulled his arm back.

Tikki shot in front of Adrien and Marinette, arms thrust forward. 

As Claude released the needles, Tikki used the energy crackling in her palms to project an electric pink shield in front of her charges. 

The needles hit the shield half a second later, and disintegrated in an electric charge. 

The Order took Claude’s first move as their signal to attack, surging forward from all directions in one swift motion. 

Tikki expanded her shield to surround them from all sides.

“You need to call for backup,” Tikki urged. 

“Already done.” Adrien replied. That energy surge hadn’t been just to show off, after all. 

Just then, a horde of Kwami rushed through the now-open windows, appearing more like a cloud than demons. 

The Order members who didn’t notice the horde charged forward, attempting to press through the shield. It was a stupid move, really. In mere seconds, the handful of humans were shocked by Tikki’s shield. It was like being stunned by a taser, each of them dropping to the ground near instantly, passed out from the electrical current coursing through their bodies. 

“There, a few fewer problem children to deal with,” Tikki said proudly. 

The Kwami that had flown in through the window took the opportunity to transform, revealing a variety of demons ready for battle. They were still outnumbered, and the bar was cramped, but thanks to Tikki’s shield, they were more evenly matched.

Tikki dropped her shield as the remaining Order members engaged with the Kwami knights. The distraction was welcome, the crowd separating Marinette and Adrien from Claude. 

Adrien took it as an opportunity and slammed both of his hands on the wooden floor. He watched the floorboards rot, years of water damage and wear suddenly appearing in a moment. 

The rot spread, and several feet of flooring began to creak, crack, and collapse in on itself. Several humans fell with it, falling through the heavy wood and nearly into the cellar of the floor below. 

Adrien slipped past groups of humans and demons who were more focused on one another than they were on them. They nearly made it to the door for their escape. Adrien dragged his Cataclysm across a wooden beam as they passed. It disintegrated to dust. The upper supports rattled under the strain. 

Marinette kept pace with him easily, slipping past flying weapons and shifting past fighting bodies like it was a dance, all the while keeping hold of Adrien’s tail.  His hand was raised towards the door, their escape so close he could literally almost touch it. And he was just about to. If he could just lay a single finger on the door--

But just before he made it, his hand landed on a different surface, the cover of a book, before being deflected. Adrien nearly lost his balance, barely managing to catch himself. 

Claude stood over him, that crazed grin of his splitting his face. “I’m not letting you go that easily. I need that ring.” 

He had his own dagger at the ready, and he was poised to attack.

A deep growl rumbled from deep in Adrien’s chest, so animal like in it’s resonance that he barely recognized it himself. 

He lunged forward, momentarily releasing Marinette from his grasp, claws at the ready. It was time for Claude to go. 

He swiped forward, aiming straight for the bastard’s face. He’d killed Adrien’s mother. He was threatening Marinette, and he was gunning for the downfall of his entire race. If Adrien didn’t take him out, the darkness would win. It would consume Adrien’s realm, and Marinette’s realm, taking every life it touched in the process. 

That ended right then, with Claude.

Adrien very nearly made contact, but Claude grabbed his wrist right at the joint and shoved him backwards.

Adrien narrowly blocked the blow Claude was aiming at his stomach. He tried to knock the knife from Claude’s hand, but he simply shifted his grip to flip the dagger to hold it horizontally.

He slashed the blade, aiming for Adrien’ neck, but Adrien dropped to the floor and swiped with his leg. Claude jumped just before Adrien knocked him on his ass. 

Marinette watched the battle from the sidelines, her heart in her throat. Through all of the chaos of bodies and weapons clashing, and the metallic scent of blood on the air, Marinette didn’t take her eyes off of Adrien for a moment. She wanted to step in, to help him fight this man off, but she was stuck. She watched for an opening, looked for any split second of distraction from Claude that she could use to her advantage. 

There it was! Adrien managed to finally land a kick to Claude’s stomach. Marinette could strike him on the back of the head, and he’d be distracted enough for Adrien to finally get his hands on him--

But she never got the chance. The large man who had been guarding the door earlier grabbed Marinette by the shoulders, holding her back. 

“Let go of me!” she cried, trying to ram her elbow into his stomach. He deflected easily.

Adrien’s head shot up at the sound of Marinette’s distress.

_ Shit _ . 

His split second of distraction was all Claude needed. While Adrien tried to reorient himself, Claude managed to finally land his blow. 

Only a moment too late did Adrien see the curved blade of the kris coming at him. It sank into his shoulder, right near his throat. 

_ “Aaaagh!” _

Claude dragged the dagger down his chest, over his heart and lungs, his green eyes manic, sweat falling over his brow. 

The cut wasn’t deep, Adrien realized. Maybe he still had a chance to--

A sudden, paralyzing pain shot through Adrien’s body, starting from the wound and radiating out to his chest, and limbs. Even with his mouth open, he couldn’t force a sound through.

“Adrien!” Marinette screamed. She struggled against her captor’s hold on her arms, kicking her legs and twisting her whole form, fighting to get to his side, but his grip wouldn’t loosen a bit. 

She could only watch, helpless, as Claude took Adrien’s hand and slid the silver and black heirloom ring right off of his finger. “So this ring is the key to the portal, huh?”

Claude rose from over Adrien’s body, tensed in some unspeakable agony, and he had the audacity to laugh. 

He turned his piercing gaze to Marinette, face twisted into a demented gleeful expression that would haunt her dreams for years to come. 

“Don’t worry, little princess,” Claude said, still breathing heavily. He stroked her cheek with the pad of his thumb, the action alone to make her want to throw up. “The poison on that dagger is specially formulated to eliminate any demon it comes in contact with from the inside out. As soon as he’s gone, the spell he’s cast on you will break, and you’ll be safe again. Fortunately, he hadn’t yet soiled your soul by consummating a marriage. You can still be saved.”

Marinette was disgusted. She pulled herself back and spat in his face as hard as she could.

“You little bitch!” The man holding her growled, his grip around her tightening.

“Easy, Antoine.” Claude urged, wiping his face with the sleeve of his robe. “She’s not in her right mind, remember? Just keep her under control for a few more minutes.”

Claude turned his back and made to walk away.

The pure fury in Marinette’s stomach boiled.

She looked at Adrien’s weakening form and futily called his name, urging him to stay with her. 

_ No, no no no no, _ she thought,  _ this can’t be happening.  _

Tears cascaded down her face. 

She couldn’t lose him like this. 

Their last moments together couldn’t be these. 

They hadn’t gotten to talk things out. 

She hadn’t even told him she still loved him.

And it was all her fault. 

She’d been the one who’d insisted on coming here, on checking on her friend. She was such an idiot, and now Adrien was going to be the one to pay for her mistakes.

She couldn’t leave things this way. 

She couldn’t just sit here and watch him die. 

The white hot rage surged forward, filling her chest, then radiating out of her. This power felt familiar to her. It reminded her of her sessions working with Master Fu, when he trained her in using the light within her. 

Was this the power of the  _ Kore _ ?

Marinette embraced the feeling, and let it flow naturally through her until the white light radiated from her palms the same way Adrien’s Cataclysm had formed in his. 

Feeling the strength settle deep in her bones, she threw her elbow into Antoine’s stomach, forcing him to drop her and momentarily putting him out of commission.

A sudden calm came over her as her feet once again touched the ground. 

Fortunately for her, Claude hadn’t gotten far.

Hearing the sound of his underling crying in pain, he turned back, “What is it this ti--”

Marinette took advantage of  pulled back her arm and punched him directly in the nose.

She grinned at the satisfying crunch from the impact of her fist against his cartilage. He staggered, and wailed in pain as his hand came up to his face to clutch where she’d hit him.

Marinette shook out her hand, and was pleased to see the light still radiating from her fingertips. 

She waited for Claude to right himself. He started to fix her with a nasty glare, but looking upon her face sent him staggering backwards again in shock.

“Your eyes…” He murmured. “I was wrong. You’ve already been tainted by them.” Even though he was still holding his nose, she could still see the sneer of disgust. 

He finally lowered his hand. 

Marinette gasped. Half of his nose was...completely gone! Like it had been burned away right where she’d touched him, leaving nothing but smoke and ash. 

Master Fu told her that this ability was powerful, but he never said anything about it hurting anyone. Was it that dangerous?

Unfortunately, Marinette didn’t have time to ruminate on this recent development.

Claude grabbed his kris from the ground beside him. “The demon’s evil has already taken over your soul. Now the only way to save you is to send you to the light.”

He came at her, but his movements seemed slow to Marinette, as if he was moving through molasses. She leaned to the side, his dagger narrowly missing her. As his hand passed by her head, she grabbed his wrist and felt the flesh sizzle under her fingers. 

He cried out in pain, but she only gripped him harder. When finally he dropped his dagger, she kicked it away and swiped at his ankles until he fell to the ground below her.

“If you want to see the light,” She said, dropping his singed wrist, “I can show it to you.”

Instinct took over. She held her hands together and focused all of the energy she could into them. She didn’t have time to marvel over the bright ball of light that she held in her bare hands. She could see that Claude was trying to get to his feet, and given the chance, he would take her out the same way he’d killed his sister, and the same way he’d hurt Adrien.

Adrien.

She could feel that he was barely holding on. She wasn’t sure how, but she could feel him slipping. The idea of losing him was what sent her over the edge. 

She pointed her sphere of light directly at Claude’s miserable face and reveled in the way fear finally rose in his eyes. Finally, the sinister, cocky gleam in the eyes that nearly resembled Adrien’s had been replaced with the horrified realization of his now limited mortality. 

With one final breath, she released the light. From the palms of her hands, a bright beam shot straight at Claude. She couldn’t see him, but she heard his agonized wails as the light overtook him. 

Only when she could no longer hear him did she finally stop, letting the stream of light fade away, leaving behind nothing but dust and Adrien’s silver ring. 

Marinette fell to her knees as the heat of the light energy receded. Her hands were trembling. Tears returned to eyes, and her breathing came in heavy pants. Her heart thundered in her chest as she struggled to comprehend what she’d just done. 

She had just literally disintegrated a man.

The world whirled around her as she stared numbly at the pile of dust in front of her. 

“....ette! Marinette!” 

As the ringing in her ears receded, she distantly heard a familiar voice calling her name. Numbly,  she looked up to see Nino’s worried eyes mere centimeters from her face.

“Marinette,” he said, “I know you’re upset, and I know you’re scared, but right now Adrien really needs you.”

Adrien.

That’s right, Adrien was still…

Marinette turned to see Adrien’s body, slack and rapidly losing strength. She needed to get to him.

She didn’t have the strength in her legs to stand, but she somehow managed to crawl to his side.

He looked like a child, so small and pale. His ears were drawn back in agony. She carefully, and with trembling fingers, drew his head into her lap. She smoothed his hair out of his eyes and felt her breath catch in her throat. 

“Adrien,” she whispered. She lowered her forehead to his. A horrible sob wracked through her, but she tried to keep control of herself. “Adrien, I’m so sorry.”

“...nette…” She heard him breathe. 

She pulled back just enough to see his lips moving. 

“Please don’t try to speak, Adrien.” She pleaded. “We need to get you some help.

“Marinette, I…” His words came with a struggle, but he seemed determined to force them out. He weakly struggled to raise his hand. 

Not wanting him to waste his strength, Marinette took his palm in her’s. His fingers wrapped around her hand, and he finally relaxed for a moment. 

He forced himself to open his eyes and look at her.

He couldn’t tell why, but her eyes seemed bluer somehow. Brighter. He wanted to fall into them forever.

“Marinette,” he forced her name past his lips one more time, but the effects of the poison were getting to be too much for him. “Always remember...that I….love...you.” 

The final word that left his lips came out more as a sigh. Marinette couldn’t hold her tears back any longer. 

That wasn’t fair. He couldn’t just leave her like this. She still had so much left to say.

“Marinette, please,” Nino said, hand clutching her shoulder. “You have to save him.”

“Save him?” She sobbed, “How am I supposed to save him?”

“You’re our  _ Kore _ , Marinette. The light lives within you. The light is what gives us all life. If there is any hope of saving Adrien, it lives in you.”

“The light?” Marinette wanted to deny it. She hadn’t finished her training. All she had been trained to do was grow plants. 

But she couldn’t deny it. Looking at the smoking heap that had only moments before been the immortal man who killed Adrien’s mother and started a terrorist organization bent on eliminating the Second Realm, she couldn’t deny the abilities she had any longer. 

Marinette wiped her eyes with the back of her arm. “Okay. I’ll try.”

Nino squeezed her shoulder. “I’m right here. I’ve got your back.”

Oddly, even though she’d only known him a short time, it gave her strength to know that he was with her. 

Marinette took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She could feel Adrien was still with her, but he was fading quickly. She needed to work fast. 

She clutched his hand between her palms and linked her fingers around his. 

She could hear Master Fu’s instructions as if he were there with her.

She felt the familiar energy of the light coursing through her like a network. She pictured the light passing through her veins until it reached the palms of her hands. 

“Focus on the light,” she reminded herself.

She pictured it gathering in the palms of her hands, and from her hands into Adrien’s, just like when she gave the light to the seeds. She pictured the light seeping into his skin, the color returning, the wounds healing and his pain easing. The light could heal him, if only she could transfer it. 

She pictured the light eating up the last of the poison in his body. She hear her own heartbeat thundering in her ears, unwilling to stop until she could no longer hold herself upright.

She finally allowed herself to open her eyes, body swaying as her muscles threatened to give out. 

A wave of dizziness overcame her, and the weakness that she’d been beating down since leaving the Second Realm hit her three fold. Spots danced in front of her eyes as the world spun.

She clung to consciousness and watched Adrien’s face. So far there was no sign of change.

Marinette’s heart shattered. 

“It didn’t work,” she hiccuped. 

Once again, she pressed her forehead against his. She didn’t have the strength of will to hold the tears back this time. 

“I’m so sorry, Adrien.” She sobbed, clutching his hand against her chest. “I’m so sorry. I never even got to tell you that I love you.” She murmured, pressing a kiss to his nose. Her tears fell onto his cheeks, and his closed eyes, but there was no sign that he even felt them. 

“Marinette!” Nino said, shaking her shoulder. She tried to shake him off, to give her time to be with Adrien before he was really gone, but he wouldn’t let up. “Marinette please!”

“I’m sorry, Nino.” She whispered. “I couldn’t help him.”

“No, Marinette,” He said, forcing her off of Adrien, “Look!”

Marinette opened her eyes, if only to glare at Nino, but a different kind of glare caught her attention.

A beam of light, much like the one she had shone at Claude only moments before, was radiating out of Adrien’s chest. It glistened through his skin where Claude had cut him, like light shining through cracks in stone. 

The light was healing him. 

Slowly, the color returned to Adrien’s skin. Marinette could sense his life force getting stronger again, and the fuzzy black ears on top of his head flicked with life once again. 

She did it. 

She hadn’t failed after all. 

Marinette trembled with fresh relief. 

She hadn’t lost him. 

After a moment, the light faded, not even leaving a scar behind it. Just pale, smooth skin, as if he had never been touched at all. And as soon as the light was gone, she felt him stirring again. His fingers squeezed around her’s.

“Adrien?” She murmured, leaning into him. “Adrien, are you back with us?”

His face scrunched up in discomfort before he cracked his eyes open. He looked to the left and the right before finally landing on her. The lines around his brow eased, and his grip on her palm strengthened. 

“Hey there, Bug,” he rasped, “did you miss me?”

“Adrien,” She laughed, for once thankful to hear his sass. He made it. He was really alive.

Marinette finally released his hand, only to throw her arms all the way around him. The action woke Adrien up the rest of the way, and he pushed himself up so that they were both in a more comfortable position. Marinette sagged against him, all of the strain from the fear and agony taking over her body, but she was unwilling to be apart from him now. 

Adrien tenderly returned the embrace. 

The details of what happened after Claude stabbed him were a bit fuzzy, but as long as Marinette was still in his arms, that was all that mattered.

“Thank God,” Nino sighed, his own arm coming around his best friend’s shoulders. “I almost thought we lost you, bro.”

Adrien chuckled. “It takes a lot more than one corrupt cult leader to take me out.”

“Thank goodness for that,” Plagg said, approaching with heavy footfalls. The tall Kwami crouched next to Adrien and Marinette, and he noticed the bruises forming under his cousin’s dark eyes. “Now that this is all over, can we please go home? I want to get the clean up crew on this ASAP.”

“Over?” Adrien lifted his head to study the bar. 

Plagg was right. Things were definitely over. The Royal Guard was battered, and nearly all the humans were bloodied and bruised, but there didn’t seem to be any casualties on either side. Except…

“What happened to Claude?!” Adrien exclaimed.

“Ask your girlfriend,” Plagg remarked. “She totally smoked him.” He jerked his thumb at a pile of smoking ash near the door. 

It took Adrien a second to catch the implication of those words. “Wait, that--that dirt--that’s Claude?” He grabbed Marinette’s shoulder and pulled her back from him. “Marinette, how did--”

But Marinette wasn’t with them at the moment. She had completely passed out. Her body was limp in Adrien’s arms. 

Tikki rushed to them when she saw the state of her charge and began checking vitals. “She seems to be alright for now, but if we don’t get her back to our realm soon, she may not be so lucky.”

“I think this belongs to you,” Plagg said. Adrien held out his hand, and Plagg dropped his family ring into his palm.

“Do you need me to carry her?” Nino asked, taking Adrien by the elbow. 

Adrien shook him off. Despite his little bout of dizziness and the encounter with a dagger, Adrien had never felt healthier in his entire life. “I’ve got her.” He slipped his arms underneath Marinette before rising to his feet, holding her princess style so that her head was against his shoulder. “Is this place secure?”

Tikki nodded. “All of the top ranking Order members have been accounted for and are being taken into custody. No one else is a threat to us, in this realm at least.”

“What about Nathaniel?” Adrien asked, remembering why they had come here in the first place. 

“He was located about two Kilometers down from here, passed out in an alley,” Tikki reported. “It seems that after stealing Nathaniel’s phone, there was a minor confrontation. He is being escorted to the hospital as we speak, though his injuries are minor.”

Adrien nodded, glad, at least, that he could tell Marinette that her friend was alright after all. “Good. Then, I will be opening the portal. Access between the worlds will be active for the next five hours for the clean up crew. Be sure to have a guard posted at this side of the portal at all times.”

“Of course.” Tikki nodded. 

Nino placed Tikki and Plagg in charge of watching over this side of the operation while he made his report of the Guard’s victory to the King. 

Adrien took that as his cue to summon the portal. He slipped his ring onto his finger and shifted his grip on Marinette so that she wouldn’t be caught in the crossfire of his ring. A bright flash of light illuminated the bar, signaling that the portal was active and ready. 

Marinette stirred in his arms. 

“Shhh,” he tried to soothe her with his voice. “Don’t worry, Marinette, I’m going to make sure you get fixed right up.”

She turned her nose into the revealed skin of his shoulder. “Adrien…” She whispered. 

He drew soothing circles into her arm with the pad of his thumb. “What is it, Bug?”

She lightly gripped at the stained cloth of his shirt, but did not open her eyes. “Love you.” 

Adrien felt his heart thunder in his chest. He nuzzled his cheek to the top of her head in the only show of affection he was capable of giving her in the moment and hoped that it would communicate what he was feeling for her. “I love you, too.”

Marinette sighed and relaxed against him, releasing his shirt as she once again drifted into unconsciousness. 

Nino’s hand landed on Adrien’s back. “Come on, bro. Let’s get the two of you through this portal before your father kills you all over again.”

Adrien nodded, still reveling in the euphoria of Marinette’s confession. “Yeah. Let’s go home.”

Adrien followed Nino through the portal, sparing only a final glance at the pile of ash that was his uncle. 

Feeling the weight of Marinette in his arms, Adrien couldn’t find it in himself to feel sorrow or remorse for the man. He could only feel hopeful about his own future, and the future of this powerful young woman in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _From today, I’m  
>  Only obsessed with you  
> But I’m not dangerous so baby don’t worry  
> I’m only obsessed with you  
> If I can have you, I’ll do anything  
> I don’t think I can do anything without you  
> I can’t live a day without you  
> I’m gonna try to handle you  
> I’m not dangerous so baby don’t worry_


	18. The Cure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Cure by Lady Gaga  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4IXxzioDAk

Marinette felt like she was floating on a cloud. She was warmer than she had been in what felt like ages, surrounded by warm marshmallows. 

She stirred, wanting to burrow deeper into the marshmallows. 

She hadn’t slept this well in a while either, despite the exhaustion that had seeped into her very bones. 

She wasn’t ready to let go, but there was this niggling sensation that she was being watched urging her to wake up already. 

Marinette cracked a tired eye and groaned at the off-colored sunlight coming through the window. It was the shade of a lovely early evening sunset, with its golden hues, but with the intensity of high noon. She buried herself deeper in her puffy duvet and tried to ignore the light that was slowly pulling her into consciousness. 

“Oh no you don’t,” a familiar voice chided gently.

Someone tried to tug the covers out from her grip, but nearly twenty years of being not a morning person had trained her reflexes. She wasn’t letting go that easily, no matter how tired she was. 

“Aw, Marinette, please?” The melodious voice that reminded her of summer days pleaded gently. “You need to have something to drink. You can go back to sleep after, I promise.”

She groaned, but had to admit that the dryness in her throat was growing more uncomfortable by the second. She cracked an eye and squinted against the sunlight. She stretched her arms over her head and shimmied a bit out of the duvet. 

“Morning, sleepy head.”

Marinette turned to the voice, nearly blinded by the literal embodiment of sunshine sitting in her bedroom.

“What time is it?” She murmured, voice raspy. “What happened?”

“You passed out after the battle,” Adrien said, sitting down on the edge of her bed. “It’s been nearly a full day.”

That woke her up. Marinette shot up, “A full day?! Like twenty four hours?!” The movement was far too sudden. Marinette’s head spun, and she felt like she was going to start dry heaving. 

“Woah, take it easy!” Adrien reached out as if to rub her shoulder or back, but he pulled back at the last second to rub the back of his neck instead. “Your body is still weak from being away for too long. Please, drink something.”

Marinette nodded. “Anything to make the room stop spinning.”

“This should do it, then,” He said. He handed her a teacup and saucer. “We finally got a hold of Master Fu. According to him, the way to cure this kind of sickness in either realm is a special floral tea with Second Realm flowers. The chefs came up with this blend to suit your tastes in particular. It’s Peach Blossom and Amaranth.” 

Marinette took the cup delicately, worried she may still drop it. The heat from the porcelain soothed aches in her fingers she hadn’t even noticed until then. “Thank you.” 

The aroma from the tea was intoxicating. It smelled fresh and bright, and she began to feel the clarity return to her thoughts as the aroma filled the air. She took a sip, finding it surprisingly sweet. The heat from the tea soaked into her tight muscles, and finally the world stopped spinning around her. 

“Once you’ve finished that, if you’re feeling up to it, I can send for some food.” Adrien said, standing, averting his gaze. “Once you’ve had something to eat from our world, I’m sure you’ll start to really feel like yourself again.” 

He turned to leave, wanting to give Marinette some space to recover, and not yet entirely sure where he stood, when a soft hand grasped his fingers. 

“Adrien,” She whispered, “Please, stay?”

Adrien wasn’t sure what to say. He hadn’t expected this. He thought she would want nothing to do with him. Sure, there was what she’d said on the battlefront, but that was different. Emotions got heated in those situations, and there was no telling if she would end up regretting what she’d said. Besides, he knew she was still mad over what he’d said and done when he left her. They had a lot left to talk about, and it would be an incredibly long, difficult conversation, but Marinette’s recovery took precedent. 

“If you don’t want to, that’s fine.” Marinette said. Adrien wasn’t sure if her voice was still raspy from sleep, or if he heard it break at the end. “I just thought, maybe if it was okay, you could sit with me for a while?”

“Are you sure you’re up for that?” Adrien asked, terrified that at any moment, she would take it back and kick him out. He didn’t want to press his luck, but all he wanted to do was snuggle up next to her in that bed and reassure himself that she was still with him.

She nodded, still not meeting his eyes. 

“Then I’ll stay.” He agreed. 

Marinette flushed and shifted over in the bed, leaving enough room for him to join her. 

Adrien climbed up on top of the mattress and the puffy duvet, leaving several centimeters and a layer of cotton between himself and Marinette. 

They sat quietly together while Marinette finished the rest of her tea. Finally beginning to feel like herself again, she settled back into the pile of pillows behind her. She had forgotten how nice a royal bed could be. 

Adrien didn't say anything, but she could feel his tension. She didn't want to do this. She would rather just sit in the quiet and pretend everything was okay again, but she couldn't do that. 

They needed to talk. 

Marinette sighed and placed the teacup and saucer on the bedside table. Her head was still swimming, but Adrien was right, the tea had helped significantly. At the very least, she could think clearly enough to tell Adrien what she needed to say. 

Marinette tucked her legs in and leaned back into the pillows. She tilted her head a bit to look at Adrien. “We should probably talk…about before and...the other night, too.”

Adrien quirked his head towards her. “Are you sure you're feeling up to that?”

Marinette nodded. 

He sighed and sank further into the pillows, not meeting her eyes. “Can I say something to begin with?” 

“Go ahead.” Marinette said. 

He took a deep breath. “I wish you had listened to me when I told you it was dangerous to go to the bar. It was a huge risk. We're very fortunate that it all turned out alright, but that might not have been the case. It was reckless.” 

Marinette’s chest clenched at her guilt. “You're right. I know you're right. I was careless, and I put your entire plan at risk.”

“You did. I understood your intentions, and I allowed it to happen, but it doesn’t change the fact that it was incredibly risky, and dangerous. In situations like that, it is better to listen when others warn you of the consequences.”

Marinette nodded. Her pride stung with the way he pointed out her flaws, but he was absolutely right. She was careless, and she needed to own up to that if she wanted this to work. “I am very sorry, about all of it. Especially comparing you to your father. That wasn’t fair of me. You’re nothing like him. I won’t say things like that again.” Her eyes flicked to his chest. “ How are you feeling, by the way?”

Adrien’s hand absentmindedly came to rub a circle around his pectoral. “I’m good as new. That power of yours really is amazing. When you were done, I actually felt stronger than before. Even when my mother was still around, I’ve never seen power like that before.”

“What...exactly did I do to Claude?” Marinette asked. 

“I asked Master Fu about that. He’s the only one who seems to truly understand the power of the  _ Kore _ . Claude said that he found the key to immortality by watching Master Fu and Wayzz make their tea that connected them to this world, but according to Master Fu, that wasn’t entirely the case. That tea won’t grant just any human immortal life, only those with the power of the light. From the moment Claude decided to kill my mother, the darkness consumed his soul. He said that she was the one who had forsaken herself, but in reality he was the the one who had sold his soul. The power of the darkness is what gave him life. So when the power of your light touched his skin, it ate away at the darkness in his soul until…”

Marinette nodded, not needing Adrien to finish to understand what he meant. 

The two of them sat quietly for a moment, soaking in that information. 

Adrien finally cleared his throat, breaking the silence. “So, even though it was reckless, I guess it was a good thing you were there. We were able to take out a terrorist cell and their leader in just one battle thanks to your power.”

Marinette didn’t know what to think about that. “I’m happy to help, I guess.” 

“So, where does this leave us?” Adrien asked.

“Well,” Marinette said, plucking at a bit of fuzz on her sheet, “I want to be honest with you, and I want you to be honest with me. If there are problems, or doubts, or arguments, I want to be able to deal with them straight on. I don’t like that you left, and I don’t like what you said, but more than that, I don’t like that you made a decision about my life without talking to me first.”

Adrien nodded. “That was wrong of me. I was afraid, and I acted without thinking. It’s no excuse. I truly am sorry, for all of it. I’m sorry for hurting you the way I did.”

“I’m sorry for forcing you and the Guard into a dangerous situation.” 

Adrien held his right hand out to her with a smile in his eyes. It was almost like he was asking her to start over. A new beginning. Marinette felt her own smile rising in return. They still had a lot to deal with, and several problems left to resolve, but this was progress. Marinette took his hand in hers, thankful for the feeling of warmth in his skin. But instead of shaking hands and letting go like he had last time, his grip tightened. He laced his fingers in hers as if to draw them closer together.

“I know that we’ve been through a lot,” Adrien said, his voice lower and rougher than usual, “but for the sake of honesty, I want you to know where I stand.” He used his free hand to push his bangs up away from his eyes before using it to cover the back of Marinette’s hand. “I love you, Marinette. We haven’t known each other very long, but I’m completely in love with you.”

Marinette’s heart was pounding, and she was sure that the dizziness wasn’t just another spell of weakness. She was sure that her face was as red as a strawberry. She only hoped her words wouldn’t fail her like they usually seemed to at moments like this.

“You don’t have to say anything,” he assured her. “I just needed you to know.”

Marinette shook her head. “This is something I need to say.” She took her left hand, shaking with nerves, and placed it lightly over Adrien’s. “I should have told you when my feelings changed. Maybe...if I had, we could have understood each other better. It’s just...every time I get nervous, my words get all mixed up. It’s a bad habit I’ve had since I was a kid. Sometimes, it’s just easier not to say anything. But this was important, and I should have told you sooner. I love you, too, Adrien. You’re right, it has been just a short time, but being away from you was so hard because it felt like I lost my best friend.”

“I don’t want to make decisions for you, Marinette. I could tell you that we don’t have to be apart again, but I want you to be happy with whatever you do in your life. I want that choice to be your own, whether it’s with me or not.”

“So ask me.” Marinette said, releasing his hands and shifting her position so that she could lean her back against Adrien’s shoulder. She laid her head against his collarbone, the show of affection coming so easily for her now that the hard part was over. It was like they had fallen back into their old routine of constantly touching one another, whether it was sparring or tackling one another to the floor after a race, or just sitting shoulder to shoulder together in front of the fire. Only, this time, there was a deeper meaning to being close to each other. Leaning on him like this, Marinette finally felt that they understood each other.  

Adrien tucked Marinette into his side, letting her relax into him. “What do you want for the future, Marinette?”

She smiled. “I want to try again, here with you. Not because of a contract. Not for my  _ maman _ . This time, I want it to be about what is best for the two of us, but that all depends on what you want, too.”

“I want the same thing,” he said, “but what about your dreams? Going to school, and starting a fashion line? And your friends and family, they need you in their lives as much as you need them in yours. I can’t offer you much in the way of a warm family atmosphere like you have at home.”

Marinette hummed, already working through a plan in her head. “Your father isn’t planning on giving up his place on the throne any time soon, is he?”

Adrien snorted. “Are you kidding? That man would work until he died if he could. I could be out of work until my 900th birthday just because he doesn’t want to let go of control.” 

“So then, is there really any rush for me to give up my life?” She asked. “If we’re even considering restarting this contract, we should look at the possibilities ahead of us. I’ve lived parts of your life. Maybe, in order to really get to know each other, you should get to know my world as well.”

“My father will have an aneurysm before he allows that.”

“The main threat to our lives and our worlds came from the Order, right? But they’re gone now. Maybe we can convince your father to allow for interdimensional communication again.”

Adrien looked skeptical. “You think you can convince the most stubborn man in all dimensions to allow this to happen?”

“I’m not positive,” Marinette admitted, “but if it’s possible, I think it might level the playing field for us. It gives us an opportunity to really see one another, and I want that for us.”

Adrien considered this for a moment. He wanted Marinette to have every opportunity to follow her dreams. If he could help her make that possible without giving her up, wouldn’t that be the best option to try? “If you think we can convince him, I’m behind you.”

Marinette nodded, eyelids drooping a bit. “Thank you.”

She tried to ignore the heaviness in her limbs and the fuzziness in her brain, but the tiny adrenaline rush from their conversation and respective confessions had worn off. It was hard for Marinette to resist the pull of sleep after so long of sleeping so poorly. 

“Hey,” Adrien chided gently as he noticed her drooping on him. “We need to feed you something, remember? You’re not going to get better all the way if you don’t eat.”

Marinette groaned. “Fine, but I’m taking a shower first. If I’ve been asleep for twenty four hours, I probably smell gross.” She extracted herself from Adrien’s arms and reluctantly pulled herself out of the comfort of the blankets. “Where’s my backpack?”

Adrien went to the wardrobe to retrieve it for her. 

“Thank you.” Marinette said. 

Adrien didn’t want to leave, not yet, but he reminded himself that Marinette wanted to stay. She wanted to talk more, and she wanted to try to be with him, but first they needed to get her fixed up. He needed to give her some space.

Adrien rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll, um, just wait for you in the sitting room I guess? I’ll call down to the kitchen, too, to start getting lunch ready.”

Marinette shot him a soft smile as she dug her toiletries out of her bag. “Thank you. For everything.”

Adrien smiled shyly before excusing himself to the sitting room, his heart still trying to pound its way out of his chest. 

* * *

Marinette spent the next few days regaining her strength again. She ate well, slept as much as she could, and basically spent twenty four hours a day in her bed.

She had plenty of visitors. Chloe, Tikki, Plagg, Nino, and Adrien came to see her often, and ate meals with her so that she was never alone. They updated her on what was happening around the castle, how the troops were doing post battle, and the like.

The remaining members of the order had been taken into custody. They would serve out sentences of terrorism in the Second Realm, with no hope of returning to the human realm. The only exception being Nathaniel, who had given Adrien valuable information that provided a strategic edge to the Second Realm’s battle plan. Marinette was relieved to hear that he was to be pardoned for his part in the Order. 

Marinette had been shocked and hurt to hear about the extent of Nathaniel’s involvement. Even though Plagg and Tikki informed her that he was safe and recovering from some minor injuries, he still hadn’t contacted her. Marinette would spend hours staring at her phone, wondering whether or not she should contact him first. 

She wrote out messages to him hundreds of times, but she never hit send. It was driving her up a wall.

And so was staying in this bed.

Now that she was feeling better, she couldn’t wait to actually get out of her room and do something, but the guards kept pressing her to rest more, claiming that the strain from being in the Human Realm for so long had caused more internal damage than she realized.  

After so many days of being cooped up, she couldn’t take it any more. She waited until after the footman brought her breakfast one morning. As soon as he left, Marinette threw off her covers and put on a hoodie and some jeans. She shoved her cellphone into her pocket and headed out, making sure to check the corridors before making her escape.

It wasn’t as though she was going to get in trouble for wandering the castle or anything, she just knew that if one of the overly doting servants caught her, they would tuck her straight back into bed as if she were some kind of fragile flower. 

Marinette stuck her tongue out at the thought. 

She had a better idea of how to spend her time.

After doing a little bit of research online from the human side of things, Marinette had some suspicions about how to convince King Gabriel of her’s and Adrien’s plan. Her theory was based in human mythology, but Marinette vaguely remembered a brief mention of the story in her demon history texts before she’d been taken home. If she was right, she had precedent to go off of.

Unfortunately for her, on her way to the library to confirm her suspicions, she got too lost in thought and forgot to pay attention to her surroundings.

“Marinette?”

Her back went rigid. She should probably make a run for it, but that would only go so far. 

“What are you doing out of bed?” Adrien’s hand landed on her shoulder. 

Marinette turned towards him, a nervous grin on her face. “I guess you caught me.”

Adrien was wearing his formal dress uniform, displaying his medals from training with the Royal Guard, meaning he’d probably just gotten out of a meeting with the parliament. 

“Are you feeling okay?” He asked, pressing a hand to her forehead. “You’re not even wearing shoes.”

Marinette scowled to try to cover her blush. After their brief cuddling session a few days prior, they’d had very little physical contact, preferring to take things slow while they figured out where they stood with one another. “I was trying not to make noise. I needed to get out of that room for a little bit or I was going to go insane.”

Adrien sighed, shoulders going slack. “I can understand that. I guess we’ve been a bit...over protective lately. Sorry.”

Marinette shook her head. “It’s okay. I can understand why things are this way, but I feel better, I promise.”

“So,” he said, releasing her shoulder, “may I join you on this adventure, or is it top secret?”

Marinette tapped her chin with her index finger. “I suppose I could use some backup on this mission. It’s a pretty important one, after all.”

“I am at your service, My Lady.”  Adrien said, waving his hand with a flourish. 

“Then, please, follow me,  _ Chaton _ .”

Marinette lead him to the library and shut the door behind them. She was sure that it went against the terms of their engagement to be alone in a closed room together--even when he visited her in her suite, there was always a guard with him. But their engagement hadn’t been formally reinstated yet, not until she greeted the King. 

“Somewhere in this library, there should be records of the first  _ Kore  _ of the realm.” Marinette said. “I have a plan to convince your father that it is okay for me to travel between the realms, and reopen the gates to the portal, but in order to do that, I need to find solid records on the first human queen.”

Adrien gaped at her. “You’re going to use Queen Persephone as your evidence?”

“If I can find the book I need, yes,” Marinette said. “There was a time that the gates between the worlds were open, right? If the human version of Persephone’s story is correct, then she was allowed to travel between the realms to visit her family regularly. I just need to see the terms of her contract, and I should be able to convince him.”

Adrien regarded the library thoughtfully. “I’m sure we have the records. Record keeping was different back then, but there’s no way we would lose track of that kind of historic information.” 

Marinette walked to the nearest shelf and took out a familiar leather book, the illustrated volume of customs and history Master Fu had given her when this all started. She flipped through the pages until she found a watercolor illustration of a young woman carrying a torch and surrounded by flowers. The illustrations caption left little for them to go off of, simply staying “Queen Persephone, the first  _ Kore _ .”

“We can start with this,” she said, propping the book open on a nearby stand. “Now, where are the history texts?”

Adrien pointed her towards one massive wall of books before starting towards a shelf of his own. 

* * *

The search for information on Persephone was much more difficult than either of them could have imagined. The historic records got sloppy at about two thousand five hundred years prior. According to Adrien, that was the dark period for their realm in which a king refused to take a  _ Kore _ , and the realm nearly ceased to exist. Many of their records had been destroyed.

Eventually, Adrien had to have their evening meal delivered to the library, because the two of them were buried in volumes and documents, too absorbed to stop for a break. 

Marinette was laying on her stomach in front of the fire, two heavy scrolls laid out in front of her. Adrien watched her, giving his eyes a break from looking at his own text to look at her. How many hours had they been at this, with no luck? 

Their time together was nearly up. If they didn’t find something to convince his father soon, Adrien would have to take her home. His father wouldn’t allow the engagement to continue unless Marinette stayed there, but Adrien wasn’t going to take her away from her other life, not if there was a chance she could have both. It was imperative that they find something. 

But if they kept at it like this, they weren’t going to get anywhere. Adrien rubbed his eyes, sore from strain.

He was just about to suggest that they stop for the night and pick up where they left off in the morning, when Marinette shot upright with a shout.

“What is it?” Adrien asked, suddenly alert. 

Marinette held out the scroll she’d been looking over. “I found it!”

Adrien scrambled out of his chair to kneel next to her on the rug. “You found her contract?”

She shook her head. “Not the contract, but her personal records, ones that she wrote herself!” Marinette showed him the scroll and pointed to the heading on the delicate fabric. “Her formal title was  _ Kore Soteira _ , The Savior Maiden. She recorded her story on her final days as queen.”

Adrien took the scroll with tender fingers. “How old is this?”

“That scroll appears to be a rewrite, but it was in a collection from about 3000 years ago. She could have been around even before that.”

Adrien scanned the document. “It looks like bits of her contract are quoted as excerpts in this bit. This could work.”

Marinette couldn’t contain her excitement. Without thinking, she launched herself at Adrien, wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace. He briefly lost his balance, nearly dropping the very delicate, very old fabric scroll, but he managed to stay upright. He was sure she could feel his heart pounding. After only a second of hesitation, Adrien wrapped his free arm around Marinette’s waist and tucked his face into her shoulder. 

All that was left was to convince his father, and doing that was nothing short of a miracle. 

* * *

A day and a half later, Marinette found herself in the pearlescent throne room, kneeling before the stone faced king sitting on the ornate throne above.

She felt grossly underdressed, and terribly out of season, wearing nothing but a white sundress and strappy sandals, and a purse, but according to Nino, the King was willing to forgive her attire considering the circumstances of her return to their realm. 

“ _ Mademoiselle _ Dupain-Cheng,” the King said.

Marinette lifted her head at his direct address. 

“I must ask you why you would want to reinstate this engagement after the offense my son has committed against you. We would bear you no ill will if you were to simply leave, and of course we would continue to support your health even as you continue to live in the human realm. So why is it that you are interested in returning here?”

Marinette could tell by the acidity in the King’s voice that Adrien had gotten into a considerable amount of trouble with his father when he found out the true circumstances of Marinette’s prior departure, not that Adrien had told her that part. She glanced at him where he sat next to his father, back unnaturally stiff and straight.

The King even regarded her with the same cold eyes that he typically reserved for paperwork or his subordinates, his mistrust clear. 

“Your Majesty,” Marinette began.

“ _ Mademoiselle _ , you may rise,” The King Gabriel said, motioning for her to stand.

Marinette thanked him and stood up as straight as she could before addressing him further. “Your Majesty, I understand your suspicions, but I guarantee you that I am not here for power or money. I do not want to take advantage of your title. I came back because, as much as I have been hurt, or as angry as I was before, I love your son, and I love your realm. The people of the Second Realm have accepted me with open arms, and I care about them as well. I have seen the way the darkness has touched their lives, with the Minotaur, and I’ve seen the good this light inside of me can do. I don’t really understand how it works yet, and I am still untrained, but I believe in this power, and I believe that together with the Prince, I can help this realm as well as my own.”

The King considered her with dark, critical eyes. Marinette concentrated so as not to allow herself to look away in submission. When finally he closed his eyes in thought, Marinette silently let out the breath she had been holding. She glanced at Adrien who gave her a reassuring smile before returning her attention to the man in front of her. 

“I have seen the result of your power. There is no doubt that the light inside of you is strong, stronger even than it was in my wife, so if you return, there is certainly hope for our realm.”

Marinette did not react, even though there was a flicker of hope and in her chest.

“I suppose we can reinstate the engagement on a trial basis, however I must tell you that the darkness will be looking for a new target, another human or demon to possess and corrupt the same way it did with Claude. Until your marriage is official, the situation will remain incredibly delicate.”

“I understand. I would like to suggest that we keep the date for the formal ceremony as stated in our previous contract: the night of the winter solstice.” 

The King nodded. “I agree.” He rose from his throne and descended the steps to stand before Marinette. “Then, if you are comfortable with reinstating the contract as it was previously written, I believe we have a deal?” The King offered his hand in what was a very human gesture. 

“Actually, Your Majesty, Adrien and I have one final request.” Marinette said. 

“And what might that be?”

“Both Adrien and myself would like to propose opening the connections between the realms again. It is important to both of us that we build connections both here and over there. My family is an important part of my life. It’s the reason I agreed to the initial contract in the first place. I had dreams before coming here that are important to me as well. I can’t just leave things in my world the way they are.”

“You understand what you are proposing poses a great risk to this realm.”

“The primary threat against the Second Realm has been eliminated,” Marinette reminded him. “Prior to The Order, demons moved freely between realms. Things were balanced because they weren’t confined to a realm that so heavily draws in the darkness. It is beneficial to the human realm as well. So much of my world’s faith and culture came from the knowledge that there were other worlds out there.”

“What makes you think this is something that can work out?” The King’s voice was understandably skeptical. “How can I allow our  _ Kore  _ to be away from here for extended periods of time?”

“It has been done before,” Marinette said, producing the scroll from her satchel. “Queen Persephone,  _ Kore Soteira _ , spent half of every year in the human realm, and the remaining half in this realm with her husband, King Hades.” She passed the scroll to the King.

Marinette watched with her heart in her throat as he opened the scroll and began scanning the contents. She didn’t even notice that Adrien had come to stand beside her. 

“Father, if I may, Marinette and I both agree that  keeping up with our duties to the Second Realm should remain a priority. We would return regularly for events and meetings. Both of us would keep up with studying history, and political theory as usual.”

“You really think I will allow my heir to leave the realm as well?” 

“I’m not letting Marinette go alone.” Adrien said firmly. “She has so much left to do in her realm, family to be with and dreams to achieve, and I want to stand by her while she does that.”

“The same way I want to stand by Adrien when he becomes King one day.” Marinette added. ”But until then, we believe that this is the best way for us to compromise what we both need.”

The King glanced through the scroll once again. “Queen Persephone was in a similar situation to your’s, isn’t that correct?”

Marinette nodded. “She ate pomegranate seeds before her marriage was finalized, but her mother would not rest until she could see her daughter again. In my realm, many centuries ago, we used this story to explain the seasons. Persephone and her mother were both treated as goddesses.”

“If I do allow this,” he said, rolling up the scroll, “I have a few conditions.” 

“I expect no less,” Marinette said. 

“You have both been injured while away from the castle. You understand that under normal circumstances, I would not allow you to leave beyond what is necessary. However, you are correct. Even my top informants have told me that any threat to our realm right now is...minimal now that the Order has been eliminated. However, if you agree to a few terms, including but not limited to having an armed member of the Royal Guard with you at all times, I will consider allowing you to go.”

Marinette did everything she could to keep her excitement from showing on her face, not sure how the sudden surge of emotion would go over with the strict man in front of her. Instead, she simply smiled and gripped at Adrien’s arm with all of her might. 

“Thank you, Father.” Adrien said.

“Yes, thank you, Your Majesty.”

The King turned away from them. “Yes, well, we still have a few details that need to be ironed out, but first I believe that you must seek approval from another party before moving forward with this arrangement.”

Marinette winced. Her parents, of course. They might be a little bit more difficult to convince after what happened last time…

“You will be returning to the Human Realm tomorrow night, I presume?” The King asked over his shoulder.

“Yes, Father.” Adrien said. 

“Be sure not to be gone for long. We need to measure how  _ Mademoiselle _ Marinette reacts to the changes.”

“Of course, Father.”

“Good.” The King paused, seeming to consider his next words carefully. “Now, before you go, I would just like to say one last thing.” 

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Marinette said, caught off-guard. She had expected him to dismiss them. 

“ _ Mademoiselle _ Marinette, you have proven to be a worthy  _ Kore  _ in this realm. The power of your presence can be felt across the land, even without a formal union between you and my son. Your diplomacy and passion are a rare combination that would be...beneficial to our society and our government. And to my son. I do hope that you decide to stay.”

“Your Majesty,” Marinette began.

“Please,” The King said, holding up a hand. “Address me by my name, Gabriel.”

Adrien was stunned. His father rarely gave his true name to anyone. Marinette, too, seemed to feel the weight of the occasion. 

She bowed deeply before the King to convey her gratitude. “I am honored, King Gabriel.”

Marinette and Adrien paid their respects towards the King before taking their leave. 

It wasn’t until they were down the hall from the closed chamber doors that they finally dropped the masks of formality and allowed themselves to celebrate.

Marinette clasped both of her hands around Adrien’s. “We did it!”

Adrien circled his free arm around her waist and lifted her off of her feet, swinging her in a wide circle and relishing in her sweet laughter. “We did it!”

Marinette dropped his hand in favor of throwing her arms around his shoulders, and he took the opportunity to wrap that arm around her shoulders and press her close to him.

Rather than tucking her head against his chest like he expected, though, Marinette nuzzled her nose against his, drawing a light hearted chuckle from him.

Marinette was intoxicated by the relief, excitement, and the sound of Adrien’s laughter. Before she could think about it, she pressed a light kiss to Adrien’s lips.

Adrien’s shoulders stiffened. His tail shot straight up, and he nearly dropped Marinette, who jerked back as she realized what she’d just done.

An apology was right on the tip of her tongue for her carelessness when Adrien’s hold on her tightened as he pulled her closer. When his lips met her’s, Marinette finally understood what those sappy romance novels meant when they said the sparks would fly. That inherent chemistry that she and Adrien shared came to a head, exploding in lightning bolts between them.

They still had a lot of work ahead of them if they wanted to make this work out, but Marinette had a feeling that they would be okay. 

Nothing had ever felt as perfect as she did in that moment in his arms. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _So baby tell me yes_   
>  _And I will give you everything_   
>  _I will be right by your side_
> 
>  
> 
> _If I can't find the cure, I'll_  
>  _I'll fix you with my love_  
>  _No matter what you know, I'll_  
>  _I'll fix you with my love_  
>  _And if you say you're okay_  
>  _I'm gonna heal you anyway_  
>  _Promise I'll always be there_  
>  _Promise I'll be the cure_


	19. Epilogue: With You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woops, it took until after the fic posted to realize I forgot to put the Epilogue up here!  
> Thank you so much for supporting this fic! It has been a long journey, and without the support of my team, as well as every wonderful person on the Big Bang Discord, I would never have finished.  
> This has truly been an incredible experience. I'm so thankful to have been able to participate in such a wonderful, amazing challege with such amazing people. 
> 
> Named for With You by BAP  
> https://youtu.be/0sZuvsONoNA

Marinette was busying herself counting down her cash register for the evening. She had already let  _ Persephone _ ’s other employee’s go for the night, knowing that she could handle closing up the shop on her own that night. She finished her double check of the drawer before signing off on the account book. A chime from the front door brought  grin to her face as she lifted her head.

Her face fell when she realized just who was standing in her shop’s doorway. 

“Geeze, talk about a warm welcome,” Chloe snipped, flicking her long blonde hair over her shoulder. “I guess I shouldn’t have come to visit after all.”

The corners of Marinette’s lips turned up despite her friend’s harsh tone. “Sorry, Chloe. I thought you were…”

Chloe sank into one of the plush, elegant armchairs near the rack of purses in the window display, crossing one leg over the other. She waved her hand dismissively. “I know, I know.” She pulled a face, “Five years together and you’re just as disgusting as ever. Is this what I’m going to have to put up with for the next twelve centuries?”

Marinette chuckled and locked the register. “Sorry to inconvenience you. What brings you to this realm, anyway? Work again?”

Chloe gagged and recrossed her long legs. “Not this time. I’m still on vacation. I came by to do a little bit of shopping. Our realm is finally starting to get with the program fashion-wise, but there’s still a long way to go.”

Marinette nodded. She took her pitcher, filled with deliberately concocted floral tea,  from the fridge and offered some to Chloe before fixing a glass for herself. “When we were last there back in February wasn’t the latest thing sequins?”

“They’re everywhere. I like a good sparkle as much as the next girl, but I think we’ve taken things just a little too far.” She sighed and fell back into the chair. “Can’t you just open one of your shops in that realm, too?”

Marinette grinned. There was an idea she could run by her father in law, though she wasn’t too sure how keen on it he would be. King Gabriel had loosened the reins significantly over the past few years, especially after Marinette and Adrien had formally been married. Once the future of the realm, and the safety of his successors was properly secured, the Demon King began acting less like a tyrant keeping his own son as a prisoner and more like a father. He was still a bit...cold for Marinette’s liking, and the relationship between father and son was still strained, but King Gabriel was trying. 

He’d even eventually been supportive of their unconventional living arrangement. Six months out of the year, from March through September, Marinette and Adrien lived in Paris, in the Human Realm. Plagg, Tikki, and Nino took turns living in the realm with them, sometimes even all three at once, per King Gabriel’s orders, though their company was always welcome. 

In their time in this world, Marinette stayed true to her promise to Adrien and followed her dreams. She went to design school and ran her online store for three years before managing to graduate early at the top of her class. By that time, she’d managed to save up enough money to start a business of her own and opened  _ Persephone _ , a boutique not far from her parents’ bakery. 

_ Persephone  _ was a small shop tucked into a tiny storefront on Rue Gotlib. Marinette wanted the store’s image to be a reflection of her experiences in both realms, so she decorated it with the best of both worlds. The walls were painted aqua, the color of the sky in the Second realm. The shelves were home to a variety of dried flowers in crystal glasses, while her storefront held flower boxes that were always in bloom. Greek columns and white and gold trim reminded her of the palace ballroom, while the showcase next to the register displayed small snacks from her parent’s bakery available for purchase. And, of course, clothing of her own design filled the racks and shelves.

The shop gained momentum quickly, at a rate Marinette still couldn’t fully comprehend. Due to the nature of her living arrangement, Marinette could only keep the store open during the six months she was at home, but somehow that didn’t hurt her business. Instead, many saw it as a plus. Her clothing was always on trend, and only available for a limited time, making the demand for her products high. Magazines and viral news platforms eventually caught wind of the special store tucked into the heart of Paris, and her shop was essentially set for life with an endless stream of customers every day they were open. 

“Anyway,” Chloe said, snapping Marinette out of her thoughts, “I’d like to order everything you think will look good on me from this season’s line. I can come back tomorrow when you’re actually open to try it all on. You know what I like, so just put it aside for me, will you?”

Marinette nodded. She knew the routine by now. She’d have Chloe’s pieces ready for her in the morning, though she’d leave the fitting session to one of her assistants. Chloe was her friend, for sure, but she was still difficult when she wanted things exactly her way, meaning the two of them butt heads quite often. It was just easier for one of the other employees to help her with the fittings. 

Chloe finished her tea before excusing herself. She apparently had a room set up in the nicest hotel in the city, and she was nearly late for a spa appointment.

Marinette was just locking up when she heard the back door to the shop opening. A grin spread across her face as she turned the “Open” sign to “Closed”.

A pair of arms wrapped around her from behind, and the scent of fresh bread and butter enveloped her. She sighed as she leaned into the firm chest at her back. 

“Did you miss me today, Bugaboo?” Adrien asked. 

“Of course,” she murmured. “How was the bakery?”

“It’s doing well, as usual.” Adrien pressed a light kiss to the top of her head.

Marinette wiggled around in his arms until she could face him. She returned his embrace, laying her head against his chest and smiled contentedly. “Papa didn’t give you any trouble, did he?” It was always a concern of Marinette’s. Tom Dupain had been starkly against their marriage in the beginning, and though he came to care for Adrien eventually, especially after he started working in the bakery, she always worried about the two of them. 

“No trouble at all, though your  _ maman  _ did give us entirely too much food for dinner tonight. She seems to still be under the impression that the both of us are much too skinny to be healthy.”

Marinette hummed. “As long as I don’t have to cook, that’s fine with me.”

Adrien chuckled.

“Alright, lovebirds, that’s enough cuddling,” Plagg complained loudly from his place in Adrien’s bag, long forgotten where he’d left it near the register. “I’m starving over here!” 

Marinette reluctantly released her husband and retrieved the little cat kwami from the bag. “Don’t worry, Plagg, there’s plenty of camembert upstairs. Tikki’s probably already waiting for you, too.”

The pest didn’t wait for another second, instead phasing through the shop’s ceiling directly into the apartment above. Marinette shook her head and fished the plastic containers out of Adrien’s bag to see what her mother had packed for them. 

“I think for the first time in my life, I understand how Plagg feels,” Adrien said, his stomach growling, “I’m absolutely starving.”

“Then let’s get this heated up and ready to go,” Marinette suggested, gathering the tupperware into her arms. Her mother really had packed a lot for them. 

Adrien draped an arm around Marinette’s shoulder and took one of the heavy containers out of her arms. “That sounds amazing.”

* * *

Life was quiet for the two of them. Adrien found that he enjoyed living in the human realm more and more, despite the fact that he had to keep his demonic energy suppressed most of the time. He loved being near Marinette and seeing her flourish in her dreams, and he loved the freedom of being a part of a real family.

He and his father had been growing closer over the past couple of years, but Adrien knew that the two of them could never be a family again, not like this. Claude had done too much damage, and Gabriel had never recovered from it. So Adrien focused on his new family. 

Marinette was downstairs tending to the store while Adrien cleaned their apartment. It was a Sunday, so the bakery was closed and Adrien had some free time. After he used his ability to disintegrate the day’s garbage, he set about putting away all of the paperwork his father had sent over. Most of the documents had been edited and signed, ready for parliament, but he wanted to show Marinette what he was working on before sending it back. 

The thought brought a smile to Adrien’s face. Marinette was truly an amazing woman. She was smart, funny, and a brilliant designer. One day, she would be a wonderful queen, too. In the beginning of their reinstated engagement, Adrien had been hesitant to force too many royal duties on her, worried that she wasn’t really interested in the political side of their intended marriage. He even looked for ways for her to get out of the traditional duties of the Demon Queen, thinking that maybe she could take the title in name only. She immediately put an end to that kind of thinking, telling him that she was fully committed to that title. 

Marinette seemed to actually enjoy her duties as the future queen. She trained diligently every day, and asked to be actively involved in the work Adrien was doing with the parliament. During their months in the Second Realm, Marinette took her role as  _ Kore  _ very seriously. 

The darkness was waning from their realm, but it was still present. Two years prior, a plague had nearly destroyed a village outside of the capital city. When Marinette had caught wind of that, she established a team with the Kwami knights and set out to heal the survivors.

Her power had grown tremendously, and the village made a full recovery within days. 

Her work with charity and welfare programs was also incredible. The darkness had taken a toll on the people of their realm, spreading hunger and poverty, making their people weak and mistrustful, but thanks to Marinette, all of that was changing. She worked with Parliament to change some of the strict tax legislation, easing the burden on the lower class. She found excess in the realm’s budget and convinced the legislators to funnel that into funding for social programs and healthcare. Whenever she was able, she spent a few hours per week working with charities across the realm. Marinette seemed to be happiest when she was helping people. It was at those times that she seemed to shine even brighter than she normally did.

Adrien stretched his arms over his head and glanced out the window at the high afternoon sun. Yes, Marinette would be an amazing queen when her time came, but for now, they could just enjoy being together, and being normal in her realm.

Speaking of Marinette, she’d worked straight through lunch again. Adrien shook his head. She never knew how to take a break, did she?

Adrien shifted his form, pulling in his demonic energy and donning the mask of a human in order to make himself presentable down in the shop. He put together a plate of leftovers, making sure to put an extra slice of bread on the plate for her, before heading down the stairs. 

He was just about to push open the shop’s backroom when he felt the chill on the air. His hackles rose as he sensed a presence he hadn’t felt in a very long time. 

He gritted his teeth, wondering what he could want after so long. 

Adrien took a deep breath to calm the anger in the pit of his stomach. Marinette could handle this, he reminded himself. And if she was in any kind of trouble, Plagg and Tikki were both there. He didn’t have to worry about her.

That didn’t necessarily stop the knot in his stomach, though. 

Adrien stepped into the back room of the shop where the employees took their breaks. He placed Marinette’s lunch on the breakroom table and prepared a glass of tea for her, utilizing his enhanced hearing to monitor the situation out front. 

* * *

Marinette couldn’t say she wasn’t startled when Nathaniel stepped through her shop door that afternoon.

After that fateful night in  _ Le Papillion _ , he had become distant, eventually leaving Paris altogether. Despite his betrayal, Marinette had ached at the absence of one of her best friends. After all, the two of them had been together since childhood. 

They tried to keep in contact. She’d wanted to visit him in the hospital after the battle, when she’d returned to the human realm to announce the reinstatement of her’s and Adrien’s engagement, but even Alya had mentioned that it might not be the best idea.

So she called him, instead. 

His voice had been weak, filled with regret and sorrow. He’d apparently tried to hold Claude off from luring Marinette in, but he wasn’t strong enough.

He had apologized for everything, not just for his error in judgment in falling into The Order, but for putting Marinette in such a life-threatening situation, and for not trusting her from the start. Marinette could tell he was carrying the weight of his mistakes, and then some. 

Since then, they’d exchanged emails, but never seen each other in person. It had been five years.

And here he was, in the front door of  _ Persephone _ , looking for all the world like a lost child. His red hair had grown significantly, now in a ponytail hanging over his shoulder. He was still as pale as ever, but there was a slight flush to his cheeks. He looked...healthy. 

“Nathaniel,” Marinette breathed, taking in the sight of her old friend. 

Tikki and Plagg, who had been helping one of the shop staff position one of the mannequins in the window, were instantly on alert. Marinette held her hand up to them. She knew what they must be thinking, but she knew that Nathaniel was not her enemy. 

They nodded, but eyed the other boy warily. 

Marinette emerged from her place behind the counter and approached the boy in the doorway. 

“I’m, um,” Nathaniel began, rubbing the back of his neck, flush rising higher in his cheeks. “I’m back in Paris.”

He was shaking. 

Marinette wondered how much courage it must have taken him to come here. Sure, they’d been speaking cordially with one another, and he never stopped apologizing for what happened, but he kept his distance. Yet here he was. 

Marinette smiled, her heart warmed that her friend had come to see her after so long. “Welcome home, Nathaniel.” She wrapped her arms around him, feeling his body go rigid at the unexpected contact before he sighed in relief. 

“It’s good to see you again.” He said. 

“It’s good to see you, too.”

* * *

Adrien sighed in relief as Marinette welcomed back her old friend. He still didn’t wholly trust Nathaniel, but he trusted Marinette.

Adrien opened the door to the front of the shop to see the pair of them talking near the register. Marinette spoke animatedly about her participation in Summer fashion week, while Nathaniel looked like he was still trying to adjust to his surroundings. Adrien grinned. Marinette had given him her stamp of approval, but that didn’t mean Adrien couldn’t mess with him a bit. 

He relied on his cat instincts to move silently through the shop. Only Plagg, a fellow cat, sensed what he was up to, and his knowing grin said that he wouldn’t interfere. 

Adrien draped his arm across Nathaniel’s shoulders, leaning his weight into the slightly shorter man. “Well,” he drawled, tapping a finger on Nathaniel’s arm, “Look what the cat dragged in.”

As expected, Nathaniel yelped and jumped right out of Adrien’s reach, turquoise eyes wide with fear. The redhead began to stammer out an apology, but Adrien was already lost in a fit of laughter. 

Marinette glared at her husband, arms crossed. “That was mean,  _ Chaton _ ,” she chided. 

“I know,” Adrien chuckled, grasping his stomach, “but I kind of feel like he deserved that after everything I had to go through because of him.”

Marinette’s eyes narrowed even further and Adrien sighed in defeat. 

“Alright, sorry about that, Nathaniel.” Adrien held out his hand, unfortunately declawed thanks to his human form, for him to shake. “Can we start over? Welcome back to Paris.”

Nathaniel took his hand hesitantly and shook it. “Good to see you doing well, Black Cat.”

“Same to you,” Adrien replied. “I never did get a chance to thank you for the intel you provided to the Guard that night. You did help us out a lot in the end.”

“I should have done more,” Nathaniel said, averting his eyes. “I still feel like an idiot for being involved at all.”

“Eh, well, you’ve reflected on all of that, haven’t you, tomato-boy?” Plagg said, coming up to Nathaniel’s other side. He mimicked Adrien’s previous position and draped an arm over Nathaniel’s shoulders. 

“Would you two leave him alone?” Tikki chastised. 

Finally, the other demons relented, releasing Nathaniel. 

“You’re such a party pooper,” Plagg complained. 

For the first time since his arrival, Nathaniel gave a genuine laugh. It brought a smile to Marinette’s face, which in turn sparked a grin in Adrien. As long as she was happy, that was what mattered. 

If having her friend back in her life made her happy, then Adrien would accept that. 

* * *

Later that night, in a rare turn of events, Marinette and Adrien had the whole apartment to themselves. Plagg and Tikki had switched shifts with Nino when the shop closed, and, after bribing his best friend and convincing him that they were perfectly safe on their own for a few hours, Nino called up Alya to go out to dinner, giving the married couple a few hours of much needed alone time.

“The two of them have gotten close lately,” Marinette remarked, passing Adrien his refilled glass of wine. 

“I think Nino’s taken a special interest in your friend,” Adrien said with a grin. 

“Is that even allowed?” Marinette wondered. 

Adrien shrugged. “Before? Definitely not. But Father’s lifted the bans on interactions between worlds, and they could definitely argue that our relationship gives them precedent. I don’t see any reason why they can’t at least see where things go.”

Marinette swirled her own wine glass, lost in thought. 

Adrien set his glass on the coffee table and drew Marinette against him. He took her free hand in his and pressed a kiss to her fingers, right below her platinum wedding ring. 

“What’s up, Bug? You’re quiet tonight.”

“I just, I don’t know, I wish things with Nathe could have been different, I guess. I feel like we’ve missed out on so much together.”

Adrien sighed and rubbed her arms. “I know. But there was nothing you could have done for him. The darkness overcame him. Claude was a tricky guy.”

“I know that. I’m still thankful that he managed to come around before he went in too deep, but I still wish I could have helped him.”

Adrien took the wine glass from her fingers and placed it next to his. He wrapped his arms all the way around her, tucking his chin on her shoulder. “You’re too good, Bugaboo. What did I do to deserve to marry someone like you?”

Marinette giggled. She tilted her head to kiss his cheek. She often wondered the same thing about him. “I love you, Chaton.”

“I love you, too.” 

Adrien took her chin in his hands and pressed his lips to her’s, savoring the quiet of the moment and the love she gave him. 

Marinette shifted in his embrace, not wanting to break the kiss, and tangled her fingers in his hair. She scratched the spot she knew he liked, right behind the ears, and deepened the kiss even further. 

No matter how many years they were together, she never got tired of this. When they kissed like this, it was like the rest of the world fell away from them. Their souls entwined and everything was whole. 

She recalled what Master Fu and Tikki told her in the beginning, that the  _ Kore  _ helped the Demon King to find balance. She wondered if maybe that didn’t work both ways. Before Adrien had come into her life, she felt like she was just...waiting for something. She didn’t know what. It was like something was missing, and she didn’t know how to fill that void. 

But this demon prince, this man she held in her arms, he made her feel balanced. That thing that was missing from her life a few years ago was filled by his presence, and his love. It wasn’t as if she couldn’t go on without him, she’d had the chance to prove that to herself at least once. Instead, she felt like she didn’t want to move forward without him by her side. She could be good on her own, but with him next to her, she could be better. 

Adrien had never been so thankful to be in his position. He never expected to be blessed with this much love in his life. He’d hoped, of course. He had dreamed of having a love like his parents had, but never thought it could be real. Holding Marinette in his arms, he knew that he held something rare, precious, and incredible in his arms. She had given him a new life, breathed light into his dark world. She was truly a miraculous woman, and he would never let her go as long as they both lived. 

They would spend their years together in happiness, and nothing could come between them again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you’re lonely, I’m lonely too  
> No one can replace you  
> All day, I only think of you, how about you?  
> You and me, if we’re together, everything is OK  
> You’re the one who saved me from this deep darkness  
> I remember your precious tears  
> I want to hug you from behind  
> I will protect all of you  
> Forever With You  
> I’ll be by your side until always

**Author's Note:**

> Please feel free to check out the tumblrs of everyone involved in this fic:
> 
> Responders: nsart.tumblr.com  
> toriistorii.tumblr.com
> 
> Betas: storm-captain.tumblr.com  
> inkjackets.tumblr.com
> 
> Challenge fic writer (me): crypticcravings.tumblr.com


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